LIBEARY 

OF   THE 

Theological    Seminary, 

PRINCETON,    N.  J. 

Sec  i      iW3S 


Case, 
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A      DONATION 


Beceived 


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ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES 


UNITED  STATES. 


REV.    EDWARD  VaYLEN, 

LATE    RECTOR    OP    CHRIST    CHURCH,    ROCKVILLE,    MARYLAND. 
ELEVEN   YEARS    RESIDENT   IN   AMERICA. 


"The  surest  pledge  of  perpetual  peace  between  the  two  countries  is  to  be  found  in 
their  community  of  Faith,  and  in  the  closeness  of  their  Ecclesiastical  intercourse." — 
Archbishop  Howley. 


NEW   YORK: 
WILEY  AND  PUTNAM,  161  BROADWAY. 

1846. 


C.  A.  Alvord,  Printer, 
Cor.  John  snil  Dutch  Sts. 


fi.  Smith,  Sterkotvpkr. 

216  William  Street. 


MOST  REVEREND  WILLIAM  HOWLEY,  D.D. 

PRESIDENT  ; 

THE  REV.  DR.  RUSSELL,  AND  CHARLES  J.  MANNING,  ESQ. 

TREASURERS  ; 

THE  REV.  A.  M.  CAMPBELL, 

SECRETART ; 

AND   THE    COMMITTEE    OF 

THE  VENERABLE  SOCIETY  FOR  THE  PROPAGATION  OF  THE  GOSPEL 

IN  FOREIGN  PARTS; 

QL\)t  following  |Jflgcs, 

EXHIBITING    SOME    OF    THE    PRESENT    FRUITS,    IN    THE    UNITED 
STATES,  PRODUCED    BY    THE    EARLY    EFFORTS    OF 

THE  FIRST  MISSIONARY  SOCIETY  IN  THE  WORLD, 

ARE    APPROPRIATELY    DEDICATED. 


CONTENTS 


Chap.  Page 

I. — Passage,  and  First  Impressions. — New  York 1 

II. — Long  Island  Sound, — Newport 7 

III.— New  Bedford    12 

IV. — Boston. — The  Bishop  of  the  Eastern  Diocesu 15 

V.— Sister  Mary,  St.  Henry 19 

VI.— The  North  End 23 

VII.— Parenthetical 26 

VIII.— The  Churches  of  Boston 38 

IX. — Boston  Sectaries 41 

X. — Some  Natural  and  Artificial  Features  of  Boston 44 

XI. — Lowell. — Nashua. — Merrimack. — Amherst.  —  Goffstown.— 

Hopkinton. — Contoocockville 47 

XII. — Concord. — Epsom 52 

XIII. — Dover. — Portsmouth. — Newburyport. — Salem 59 

XIV. — Salem  Witchcraft  Delusion.— Object,  and  Conception  of  the 

Plot 65 

XV. — Salem  Witchcraft  Delusion. — Development  and  Execution 

of  the  Plot 74 

XVI. — Salem   Witchcraft   Delusion.— Discovery  and  Exposure  of 

the  Conspirators. — Fruits  of  Faith  among  the  Victims ...  82 
XVII. — Salem  Witchcraft  Delusion.— The  inquisitors   Noyes   and 

Mather 94 

XVIII.— Witchcraft  Delusion  in  England.— Fruits  of  Faith 108 

XIX. — General  Convention  of  the  Church  in  1835 113 

XX. — Rhode  Island. — Narragansett  Bay 133 

XXI.— The  Rhode  Island  Church.— Dr.  Crocker  135 

XXII.— Collegiate  System  of  the  United  States 138 

XXIII. — Providence. — Olneyville. — West  Smithfield. — Fruits  of  the 

"  Voluntary  System"  in  New  England 142 

XXIV. — Rhode  Island  Convocations 152 

XXV.— My  First  Parish 156 


vi  CONTENTS. 

Chap.  Page 
XXVI. — Withdrawal  from  the  Eastern  Diocess,  and  Farewell  of  New 

England 159 

XXVII. — The  Church  in  New  England. — Retrospect. — Encouraging 

Prospect. — Mr.  Newton's  Testimony 163 

XXVIII.— New  York.— Dr.  Milnor—  Dr.  Wainwright.— Mr.  Colton. 

— The  "  Temperance  Society." — The  Bishop  of  Vermont  174 

XXIX.— A  Sunday  in  Philadelphia 184 

XXX.— Philadelphia  Lions 188 

XXXI. — Journey  to  Washington  and  Alexandria. — Indian  Chiefs. . .  191 

XXXII— Baltimore.— Dr.  Wyatt 196 

XXXIII.— The  "  Roman  Catholic"  Society  in  America 201 

XXXIV.— Supplementary  to  the  last  215 

XXXV.— Dr.    Henshaw.— Dr.   Dorr.  —  Philadelphia  Female  High 

School.— Return  to  New  York 224 

XXXVI. — Boarding-House  Life. — General  Convention  of  1838. — Gen- 
eral Theological  Seminary. — Columbia  College 232 

XXXVII. — Philadelphia. — Dr.  Tyng. — Journey  to  the  Interior. — Lewis- 
town. — Harrisburgh. — Settlement  in  my  Second  Parish. .  237 

XXXVIII.— [Old]  York 242 

XXXIX. — The  Church  in  Delaware. — Pennsylvania  Convention 246 

XL. — Andalusia  Murder. — Bristol 250 

XLI  —  The  Hudson.— Katskill— Kinderhook 257 

XLIL— Niagara 266 

XLIII.— A  Week  in  New  Jersey 271 

XLIV. — New  York  Convention. — Bishop  Chase. — Dr.  Lancey 277 

XLV. — The  Pew  Nuisance. — The  Church  versus  Fashionable  De- 
nomination    281 

XLVI.— The  Alleghanies 287 

XL VII.— The  Ohio  River.— Steubenville—  American  Climate 291 

XLVIII.— Pittsburg— The  Mountains  recrossed 295 

XLIX. — An  Eloquent  Preacher. — Reflections 297 

L. — Ministerial  Preparation  in  the  United  States 304 

LI. — Rubrical  Conformity 317 

LII. — General  Convention  of  1841 341 

LIII. — General  Convention  of  1841,  continued. — The  Pastoral  Let- 
ter.— St.  Paul's  Church  described 353 

LIV. — Journey    to    Michigan. — Rochester.  —  Parish  Troubles. — 

Lake  Erie 373 

LV. — Detroit. — Bishop  M'Coskry. — Natural  Features  and  History 
of  Michigan. — Jackson. — The    Indians. — A    Missionary 

Priest 377 

LVI. — "  New  School"  Presbyterianism. — Return  to  Philadelphia..  386 


CONTENTS.  VII 

Chap.  Page 

LVIL— Philadelphia  Suburbs.— The  Artists'  Fund  Hall 395 

LVIII.— A  Mourning  Church 40J 

LIX.— Removal    to    Maryland.  —  Two    <:  Puseyite"    Rectors. — 
"  Chapel   Royal"   at   Washington. — Rockville. — History 

of  the  Maryland  Church 410 

LX. — Maryland   Diocesan    Convention. — Anti-Tractarian   Move- 
ment.—Result  420 

LXI. — General  Convention  of  1844. — Spasmodic  Action  of  Alarm- 
ists       427 

LXII. — An  Episcopal  Consecration — The  Bishop  of  Pennsylvania's 

Resignation. — The  Bishop  of  New  York's  Trial 435 

LXIII. — Bishop  Chase  and  Jubilee  College 440 

LXIV. — Consecration  of  the  Foreign  Bishops. — Bishop  Southgate 

and  the  Syrian  Church 453 


PREFACE. 


The  following  sheets  are  intended  to  follow  up 
the  design  of  several  recent  works  on  the  same 
subject ;  the  success  of  which,  while  it  affords  evi- 
dence of  a  growing  interest  amongst  British  Chris- 
tians in  whatever  relates  to  the  cause  of  catholicity 
in  America,  appears  fully  to  warrant  another  con- 
tribution to  the  same  subject. 

The  author  has  made  no  effort  to  shape  and  adapt 
his  narrative  to  any  established  model  in  the  same 
department  of  authorship ;  nor  is  he  prepared  with 
any  apology  for  the  prominence  which  is  given  to 
himself — unavoidably  in  a  journal  embracing  travels 
and  scenes  in  public  and  domestic  life,  in  the  latter 
of  which,  it  will  be  observed,  he  only  appears  as  a 
"  Spectator." 

That  he  has  spoken  favourably  of  the  Americans 
as  a  people,  arises  from  his  long  and  intimate  ac- 
quaintance with  them  ;  during  which  he  has  asso- 
ciated with  almost  every  class  in  that  community. 
He  cannot  lend  himself  to  a  falsehood  to  make  his 
book  sell ;  though  it  has  to  be  proved  whether  defa- 


PREFACE. 


mation  or  grotesque  caricature,  applied  to  the  people 
of  a  country,  whose  glory  and  greatness  are  our  own, 
furnish  the  only  staple  commodities  in  this  depart- 
ment of  authorship.  The  Americans,  as  a  race  of 
people,  inherit  most  of  the  good,  and  are  free  from 
many  of  the  bad  qualities  which  distinguish  the 
nation  whence  they  have  sprung ;  nor  has  the  free 
intermixture  of  continental  blood  effected  any  dete- 
rioration in  their  mental  or  physical  qualities.  The 
defects  of  character  (arising  solely  from  education) 
which  distinguish  a  portion  of  them  before  the 
world,  and  the  exhibitions  of  popular  license  which 
the  country  occasionally  presents,  originate  in  a 
combination  of  religious  and  political  influences,  in 
which  the  former  has  decidedly  the  largest  share ; 
as  in  the  following  pages  is  attempted  to  be  shown. 
The  picture  they  present  is  drawn,  however,  with 
far  less  depth  of  shade  than  many  which  others, 
belonging  to  a  different  religious  communion  from  the 
author,  have  given  before  him.  It  is,  indeed,  unne- 
cessary to  go  any  further  than  to  the  testimony  of 
the  public  teachers,  and  the  printed  organs  attached 
to  the  more  respectable  protestant  sects  in  America, 
in  confirmation  of  its  accuracy  of  colouring ;  as  well 
as  of  the  utter  inefficiency  of  any  existing  institu- 
tion, formed  by  the  "  union"  of  sectarian  influence 
and  action,  to  grapple  with  the  augmenting  evils — 
social  and  political — now  threatening  that  land.  It 
is  in  this  view  that  the  Church  Catholic,  growing 
up  so  strong  amidst  surrounding  strife  and  disunion, 


PREFACE.  xi 


possesses   an   increased   interest   to   the    Christian 
philanthropist  of  the  mother-country,  to  whom  every 
stage  of  its  progress,  and  particulars — perhaps,  in 
themselves  unimportant  as  matters  of  record — cannot 
fail   of  possessing   some   degree   of  interest.     This 
consideration  (added  to  the  other,  that  persons  and 
scenes  are  brought  forward  in  these  pages  as  yet  but 
little  known  to  a  large  class  of  English  readers)  has 
weighed  with  the  author  in  yielding  to  those  im- 
pulses which  an  interesting  ecclesiastical  relation- 
ship, in  a  land  where  he  was  politically  an  alien, 
naturally   produced,    whilst    as   he    penned    these 
chapters,  the  memory  recalled  seasons  of  Christian 
intercourse  never  to  be  forgotten,  and  hallowed  by 
many  tender  and  sacred  associations.     It  was  in  this 
relationship  that  the  author  first  understood,  in  its 
full  meaning,  the  reality  of  that  catholic  bond  of 
union  which — as  intended  by  its  Divine  originator 
— breaks  down  and  utterly  annihilates  the  lines  of 
national  prejudice.     Viewed,  therefore,  in  this  light 
—as  a  familiar  narrative  of  a  religious  and  social 
connexion  with  that  branch  of  the  one  family  of 
the  faithful  which  has  spread  out  into  a  great 
American  country  from  the  larger  growth  in  this,  and 
which  already  numbers  two  millions  of  members, 
under   twenty-eight  bishops  and  thirteen  hundred 
inferior  clergy — no   apology   is   necessary   for   any 
minuteness  of  detail  which  may  contribute  to  fa- 
miliarize the  reader  with  every  part  of  the  picture 
here  sketched.     To  catholic  readers,  nothing  relating 


Xll  PREFACE. 

to  their  fellow-catholics  of  the  United  States  can  be 
altogether  uninteresting ;  and  it  is  for  catholic  read- 
ers that  this  book  is  written. 

These  pages  are  also  intended  to  demonstrate — if 
further  historical  demonstration  be  necessary — the 
Divine  character  of  that  glorious  institution  of  epis- 
copacy, which  is  the  inseparable  note  and  mark  of 
the  Church  Universal  in  all  its  true  branches,  where- 
ever  their  blessed  shade  is  afforded  to  the  members 
of  the  human  family.  This,  the  wonderful  success 
attending  the  early,  and,  more  especially,  the  later 
efforts  of  those  who  have  been  labouring  under  the 
banner  of  Apostolic  Order  in  the  Western  Continent ; 
and  the  remarkable  manner  in  which  the  ark  which 
they  guide  (under  the  pilotage  of  her  Divine  Captain) 
has  been  saved  from  those  fearful  storms  which  have 
shattered,  or  greatly  impaired,  every  other  vessel 
around  her,  sufficiently  prove  to  the  eye  of  faith. 

May  we  not  also  hope  that  amongst  all  classes 
and  creeds  belonging  to  the  two  nations  of  a  com- 
mon ancestry,  whose  interests  and  (it  is  to  be  ear- 
nestly desired)  whose  destiny  is  the  same,  the  age 
of  petty  rivalry,  for  its  own  sake,  is  passing  away  7 
"  The  rankling  ill-will,  and  mutual  backbitings," 
that  Regina  justly  "  deplores,  even  more  than  the 
prospect  of  open  hostilities,"  is  now  almost  confined 
to  the  lowest  class  of  writers  and  politicians  in  either 
country.  The  vulgar  brawlers  of  an  electioneering 
party  in  the  lower  house  of  Congress  are  no  more 
the  exponents  of  the  substantial  class  of  citizens  in 


PREFACE.  Xiil 

one  country,  than  are  the  ultra-radical  faction  in  the 
House  of  Commons  representatives  of  the  intelli- 
gence and  virtue  of  the  middle  and  higher  ranks  in 
Britain.  Let  this  be  mutually  understood,  and 
nothing  will  be  wanting  to  complete  a  good  under- 
standing between  the  intelligent  classes  of  the  two 
countries. 

Regina  is  also  correct  in  affirming — what  the 
author's  own  experience  has  satisfactorily  proved  to 
him — that  even  amongst  the  demagogue  political 
capitalists,  the  arrogance  and  conceit  which  is 
erroneously  charged  upon  the  whole  nation  is,  in 
fact,  only  a  "  defensive"  weapon,  resulting  from  the 
contempt  which  it  was  fashionable  for  English 
writers  and  public  speakers  to  express  for  America 
and  her  institutions  long  after  the  war  which  made 
her  independent  of  the  mother  country.  Nothing 
can  be  truer  than  the  assertion  of  this  sagacious 
writer : — "  Their  bragging  and  blustering  is  superfi- 
cial ;  in  their  heart  of  hearts  every  Yankee  loves 
and  reveres  old  England.  They  yearn  towards 
their  fatherland,  which  they  still,  in  unguarded 
moments,  call  '  home,'  with  an  affection  which  needs 
but  little  encouragement  to  become  decided  enthu- 
siasm !  The  sovereign  of  these  realms  is  still  by 
them  emphatically  styled  '  the  queen,'  as  if  no  other 
female  in  the  world  wore  the  crown." 

Need  anything  more  be  added  to  show  the  unna- 
tural, and  it  may  be  added,  the  unnecessary  alter- 
native of  a  war  with  such  a  country  ? 


XIV  PREFACE. 


The  people  of  the  United  States — the  author's 
experience  and  intimate  knowledge  of  them  enable 
him  to  affirm  it— those  who  form  the  mind  of  the 
nation,  and  who,  it  is  hoped,  will  yet  recover  their 
legitimate  control  over  the  action  of  the  country — 
are  ready  and  desirous  to  join  issue  with  us  in  secur- 
ing a  lasting  alliance,  and  in  all  the  schemes  for 
more  enlarged  benevolence  to  which  such  alliance 
must  naturally  lead.  Despite  their  "defensive" 
egotism,  the  Americans  are  fully  alive  to  the  fact  of 
British  superiority,  both  in  physical  power  and  the 
higher  achievements  of  art  and  learning ;  claiming 
only  equality  of  mental  and  intellectual  greatness, 
the  natural  ingenuity  and  skill  which  has  descended 
to  them,  and  which  they  have  undoubtedly  im- 
proved, and  the  commercial  enterprize  which  dis- 
tinguishes both  nations  alike,  above  all  others  on  the 
globe.  Amongst  the  members  of  the  episcopal 
communion  this  sentiment  is  universal ;  extending 
to  a  profound  deference  to  England  on  all  points 
relative  to  dogmatic  theology  and  Church  polity. 
England,  as  the  land  of  the  mother  church,  whose 
"  long  continuance  of  nursing  care"  gave  their  own 
a  firm  footing  in  the  northern  continent  of  the  New 
World,  is  regarded  with  feelings  of  reverence  and 
love  by  every  Churchman :  it  therefore  remains  with 
the  English  nation,  and  especially  the  members  of 
our  national  Church,  to  reciprocate  a  feeling  based 
on  such  high  and  catholic  grounds,  in  the  spirit  of 
the  noble  sentiment  which  forms  (appropriately)  the 


PREFACE. 


motto  to  this  volume,  and  in  the  assurance — a  well- 
founded  one,  as  the  author's  observation  fully  con- 
vinces him  that  "  the  surest  fledge  of  perpetual  peace 
between  the  two  countries  is  to  be  found  in  their  com- 
munity of  faith  and  the  closeness  of  their  ecclesiastical 
intercourse." 

Queen  Square,  Westminster. 
Feast  of  St.  Matthew,  1845. 


ECCLESIASTICAL 

REMINISCENCES 


CHAPTER  I. 

PASSAGE,    AND    FIRST    IMPRESSIONS.— NEW    YORK. 

I  sailed  from  Bristol  on  the  25th  of  April,  1831,  in  the 
ship  "  Copia,"  a  Newburyport  merchantman,  on  its  home- 
ward course  from  Java.  The  vessel  was  making-  its  first 
voyage  ;  and  being  found,  from  its  peculiar  form,  and  the 
faulty  construction  of  its  deck,  unfit  for  distant  voyages, 
was  condemned  on  its  return  to  America,  for  foreign  trade, 
and  afterwards  employed  by  its  owners  as  a  coaster.  Ow- 
ing to  this  circumstance  the  passage  was  long  and  danger- 
ous, attended  by  great  discomfort  to  the  passengers  (four  in 
number  with  myself)  who  were  driven  from  the  cabin  by 
the  leaking  of  the  deck  in  that  part  of  the  vessel,  to  the 
larger  berths  of  the  almost  empty  steerage.  The  constant 
leaking  in  the  ship's  bottom  also  obliged  every  passenger  to 
assist  frequently  at  the  pumps,  and  kept  the  more  timid  on 
board  in  a  constant  state  of  apprehension  for  worse  conse- 
quences. 

These  were  serious  drawbacks  from  the  comfort  of  the 
passage,  and  made  me  repeatedly  regret  having  given  the 
merchantman  the  preference  to  a  Liverpool  packet,  which  I 
had  been  led  to  do  as  a  saving  of  one  half  the  expense. 

1 


Z  ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

The  Newburyport  captain  asked  twenty  pounds  for  the  pas- 
sage, and  the  charge  by  the  regular  packets  was  then  thirty- 
five  guineas  ;  the  journey  from  Bath  (where  I  took  leave 
of  my  relatives)  to  Liverpool,  making  the  whole  expense 
by  the  latter  more  than  double.  Our  captain  did  all  in  his 
power  to  lighten  our  difficulties.  He  was  a  man  of  some 
intelligence,  and  strictly  moral  in  his  deportment ;  indeed, 
the  whole  crew  afforded  a  better  example  of  steady  conduct 
than  I  have  since  observed  on  the  Atlantic  in  five  succeed- 
ing passages.  Not  an  oath  was  heard  between  the  two 
ports,  nor  any  exhibition  of  drunkenness  or  insubordination. 
It  was  the  captain's  custom  to  call  the  sailors  together  for 
prayers  twice  every  Sunday,  and  every  evening  that  the  wea- 
ther permitted  ;  and  their  exemplary  behaviour  was  doubt- 
less the  effect  of  this  custom,  and  his  own  excellent  example. 

The  other  cabin  passengers  were  an  elderly  gentleman 
from  Somerset,  on  his  way  to  Toronto  in  Canada,  accom- 
panied by  his  son,  an  interesting  youth  in  his  fifteenth  year, 
and  a  medical  relative,  bound  to  the  same  place.  On  the 
10th  of  June  we  reached  New  York. 

The  first  appearance  of  this  city  as  approached  from  the 
sea,  after  passing  the  Narrows,  is  unquestionably,  one  of 
the  most  picturesque  that  can  be  imagined.  This  arises 
more  from  its  situation  in  the  most  beautiful  bay  in  the 
world,  than  from  any  prominence  of  architectural  elegance 
in  the  city  itself ;  indeed,  when  the  ship  neared  the  wooden 
and  poorly  constructed  wharfs,  and  I  saw  nothing  but 
staring  red  unsubstantial  looking  warehouses  overlooking 
them,  I  experienced  a  sensation,  which  I  am  persuaded  every 
Englishman  partakes  on  his  first  arrival  at  this  port,  of  pos- 
itive disappointment.  Nor  do  I  wonder  at  the  admiration 
expressed  by  an  American  traveller*  on  landing  at  Liver- 
pool at  "  the  perfection,  the  beauty,  and  the  magnificence 
*  The  Rev.  Calvin  Colton.     "  Four  Years  in  Great  Britain,"  pp,  21. 


NEW    YORK. 


of  the  masonry  constituting  the  quays,  docks  and  basins, 
contrasted  with  the  wooden,  feeble,  and  perishable  docks 
and  wharfs"  of  his  own  country. 

It  should  be  remembered,  however,  that  New  York, 
though  pretty  ancient,  has  not  had  the  benefit  of  a  muni- 
cipal government  long  enough  to  compete  in  every  particu- 
lar with  London  or  Liverpool ;  though  the  changes  I  have 
myself  witnessed  during  the  past  ten  years  afford  a  good 
earnest  of  what  may  be  expected.  Doubtless,  within  that 
same  period  the  preference  for  stone  to  any  less  perishable 
material,  which  is  showing  itself  in  the  public  buildings  and 
churches  of  America,  will  extend  itself  to  the  wharfs  and 
quays  of  the  Trans-atlantic  seaports. 

Our  luggage  was  soon  examined  by  the  Custom  House 
officers,  who  were  as  polite  and  accommodating  as  could  be 
wished,  and  conveyed  to  a  hotel  near  the  steam-boat  wharf, 
whence  my  Canada  bound  friends  designed  embarking  for 
Albany  the  same  day.  Here  we  breakfasted  with  an  excel- 
lent appetite;  of  which,  indeed,  the  quantity  and  variety 
of  the  viands  were  a  sufficient  provocative.  Leaving  our 
hotel  for  a  stroll  through  the  principal  streets  of  the  city,  we 
shortly  entered  Broadway,  which  may  be  called  its  back- 
bone. Here  I  soon  found  my  first  impressions  giving  way 
before  those  of  admiration  and  surprise  as  we  pursued  our 
way  up  this  noble  thoroughfare.  About  two-thirds  of  its 
length  is  lined  with  shops,  many  of  which  vie  with  the  larg- 
est establishments  in  Fleet  Street  or  Holborn,  though  infe- 
rior in  size  and  outward  splendour  to  the  shops  of  the  west 
end.  The  rest  of  Broadway  consists  of  private  residences  ; 
several  of  which,  as  well  as  numerous  houses  in  the  north, 
or  court  end  of  the  town,  through  which  it  passes,  are  elegant 
and  sumptuous  dwellings.  The  streets  in  this  quarter  are 
well  built,  and  present  an  air  of  great  neatness  and  cleanli- 
ness. 


4  ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

If,  however,  I  should  express  my  first  impressions  of  the 
general  aspect  of  the  streets  in  the  business  part  of  New 
York  for  pedestrian  purposes,  (and  my  last  too)  it  might 
look,  and  would  be  pronounced  by  Americans,  New  York- 
ers especially,  as  ill-natured  and  exaggerated.  I  therefore, 
prefer  presenting  the  life  drawn  picture  given  by  the  editor 
of  the  New  York  "  Commercial  Advertiser,"  a  daily  paper 
of  high  character,  and  the  article  written  long  since  the  pe- 
riod to  which  this  chapter  refers. 

"  There  is  a  great  difference  between  New  York  and 
London,  in  the  regulation  of  side  walks  for  pedestrians, 
The  difference  appears  to  be  decidedly  in  favour  of  London, 
as  people  can  manage  to  get  along  the  pavements  of  that 
city.  How  much  more  noble  and  democratic  is  the  prac- 
tice in  New  York.  Here,  the  side  walks  are  put  to  their 
true  uses.  Wheel-wrights  crowd  upon  them  the  damaged 
carts  and  waggons  which  they  mean  to  repair  at  their  leis- 
ure j  vendors  of  oranges,  pine-apples,  cherries,  stale  fish  and 
the  like,  spread  out  their  stalls  upon  them  ;  the  boys  '  slosh* 
them  with  water,  from  the  hydrants,  private  and  public  ; 
grocers  pile  up  their  empty  barrels  all  over  them,  six  deep 
and  three  high  ;  stable  keepers  hitch  their  horses  along 
them  to  undergo  the  pleasing  process  of  currying,  and  the 
ladies  get  by  as  well  as  they  can.  All  this  is  delightful  to 
the  philanthropic  mind,  and  reflects  infinite  credit  upon  the 
municipal  government." 

We  passed  some  churches  in  the  course  of  our  perambu- 
lations. St.  Paul's  in  Broadway,  and  St.  John's  in  the  square 
of  that  name,  claimed  at  this  time  the  first  notice  on  the 
score  of  architectural  merit ;  but  they  are  now  eclipsed  by 
the  superior  grandeur  of  Trinity,  which  has  been  five  years 
in  progress ;  and  will  be,  when  completed,  the  most  import- 
ant ecclesiastical  building  in  the  United  States.* 

*  See  Appendix  No.  1. 


BROOKLYN.  5 

As  I  had  not  at  this  time  an  introduction  to  a  single  per- 
son in  this  wide  city,  I  only  remained  another  day  after 
seeing  my  fellow  passengers  off.  We  parted  with  mutual 
expressions  of  good  will,  and  protestations  of  friendship, 
which  the  companionship  of  seven  weeks  on  the  ocean  is 
well  calculated  to  engender.  I  have  rarely  felt  such  keen 
regret,  as  on  the  occasion  of  this  sudden  and  final  separation 
from  friends  in  a  foreign  land,  where  everything  was  new 
and  strange.  For  the  first  tune  was  I  fully  conscious  of  my 
situation,  and  felt  in  a  manner  which  the  untravelled  reader 
can  but  faintly  conceive,  the  distance  of  home — the  thousand 
leagues  of  ocean  that  separated  me  from  England.  Return- 
ing to  the  hotel,  I  found  little  appetite  for  the  meal  which 
was  spread,  nor  could  any  object  or  occupation  shake  off  the 
excessive  weight  of  gloom  which  pressed  on  my  spirits  at 
the  close  of  this,  my  first  day  in  America. 

I  employed  the  next  morning  in  a  visit  to  Brooklyn.  The 
view  from  the  heights  is  the  finest  in  the  neighbourhood ; 
indeed,  I  have  never  seen  anything,  excepting  Kattskill  and 
London  from  Greenwich,  which  equals  it.  It  takes  in  the 
entire  Bay,  covered  with  vessels  of  every  size  and  nation ; 
promontories,  batteries,  and  the  city  itself  lying  at  your  feet, 
completing  a  coup  cPceil  of  surpassing  beauty.  Wordsworth's 
picture  of  the  latter  came  in  a  moment  to  my  recollection, 
as  with  the  alteration  of  a  single  word,  equally  descriptive 
of  the  prospect  spread  out  before  me : — 

"  Earth  has  not  anything  to  show  more  fair, 
Dull  would  he  be  of  soul  who  could  pass  by 
A  sight  so  touching  in  its  majesty. 
The  city  now  doth  like  a  garment  wear, 
The  beauty  of  the  morning ;  silent,  bare, 
Ships,  towers,  domes,  theatres,  and  churches  lie 
Open  unto  the  sea,  and  to  the  sky, 
All  light  and  glittering  in  the  smokeless  air, 


ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

Never  did  sun  more  beautifully  steep 
In  his  first  splendour  valley,  rock,  or  hill. 
Ne'er  saw  I,  never  felt  a  calm  so  deep, 
The  river  glideth  at  his  own  sweet  will, 
Dear  God !  the  very  houses  seem  asleep, 
And  all  the  mighty  heart  is  lying  still." 


CHAPTER  II. 

LONG    ISLAND    SOUND. — NEWPORT. 

The  steam-boals  which  ply  on  the  American  waters  have 
been  so  often  described,  that  I  will  only  record  the  important 
fact  that  the  one  which  conveyed  me  from  New  York  to 
Newport,  belonged  to  the  largest  and  most  complete  of  the 
class.  After  tea  the  passengers  formed  in  groups  round  the 
ladies'  cabin,  or  promenaded  the  spacious  deck.  Having 
secured  a  berth  I  remained  above  till  near  midnight,  when 
descending  to  the  saloon  I  found  the  supper  tables  removed, 
and  all  excepting  a  whist  party  retired  to  their  separate 
berths.  I  regretted  afterwards  that  I  had  not  addressed  my- 
self to  my  couch  earlier,  as  the  summons  to  the  "  passengers 
for  Newport  to  get  their  baggage  ready"  broke  on  my  ear 
when  most  inadequately  recruited  by  scarce  four  hours  rest. 
But  Newport  now  stands  out  to  view,  and  in  a  few  moments 
more  thirty  or  forty  of  us  are  landed  at  the  wharf,  and  the 
huge  boat  ploughs  her  wray  onward  towards  Providence. 
We  have  passed  through  Long  Island  Sound  and  ninety 
miles  of  the  open  Atlantic,  and  are  about  one-third  of  the 
distance  up  Nanagatisett  Bay. 

The  hotel  which  received  our  party  (all  but  myself  being 
southern  visitors  to  this  favourite  watering  place)  was  one 
of  the  most  comfortable  I  have  put  up  at  in  the  United 
States ;  and  the  civility  of  the  servants  more  marked,  both 
at  the  inn,  and  in  the  families  of  Newport,  than  I  found 
elsewhere  in  the  northern  States.     Indeed4  Newport  and  its 


8  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

precincts  may  be  considered  the  Paradise  of  Englishmen, 
which  is  accounted  for  by  the  English  origin  of  nearly  all  its 
citizens,  some  of  whose  pedigree  ascends  to  the  best  parent 
stock  of  the  mother  country.  I  soon  found  cordial  welcomes, 
and  warm-hearted  friends :  and  received  on  this,  my  first 
arrival,  impressions  which  subsequent  visits  only  helped  to 
establish.  There  is  nothing  wanting  in  the  society  of  New- 
port, that  would  be  expected  in  the  most  refined  circle  of  a 
fashionable  English  watering  place. 

The  church  was  one  of  the  first  objects  which  attracted 
my  notice.  It  occupies  a  central  position,  and  is  graced  with 
a  well  proportioned  spire.  Dr.  Wheaton  was  at  this  time  the 
rector.  He  had  filled  the  incumbency  twenty-three  years. 
At  a  subsequent  period  of  my  residence  in  America  I  was 
admitted  to  a  very  near  and  advantageous  friendship  with 
this  worthy  man,  who  is  now  deceased.  Zion  Church  (in 
which  I  afterwards  received  ordination)  was  not  at  this  time 
completed.  It  is  about  the  same  size  as  Trinity,  and  occu- 
pies a  fine  open  site  in  the  west  end  of  the  town.  The  Rev. 
John  West,  the  first  rector  of  this  parish,  holds  a  high  place 
among  the  New  England  clergy.  He  is  a  good  Hebrew 
scholar,  and  well  versed  in  oriental  literature ;  he  has  since 
been  transferred  to  the  larger  parish  of  St.  John's,  Bangor, 
in  Maine ;  of  which  (newly  formed)  diocese  he  is  the  most 
eligible  candidate  for  the  office  of  bishop ;  a  post  for  which 
Bishop  Griswold  always  designed  him. 

Newport  possesses  more  interest  to  the  churchman  than 
any  other  spot  in  the  United  States — next  to  Jamestown  in 
Virginia — as  having  been  the  place  of  residence  and  scene 
of  the  labours  of  Bishop  Berkeley,  an  honored  name  in  the 
early  history  of  the  Rhode  Island  Church.  When  Dean 
of  Derry,  in  Ireland,  he  conceived  the  project  of  founding  a 
university  in  America,  and  with  this  veiw,  as  well  as  of  for- 
warding the  general  interests  of  the  American  Church,  he 


BISHOP    BERKELEY.  9 

obtained  from  Sir  Robert  Walpole,  George  the  First's  min- 
ister, a  promised  grant  of  twenty  thousand  pounds,  and  re- 
moved to  Rhode  Island  in  September,  1728.  "  Here," 
writes  Bishop  Wilberforce,  "  he  awaited  the  payment  of  the 
£20,000  endowment  of  his  college.  But  a  secrect  influence 
at  home  was  thwarting  his  efforts.  His  friends,  in  vain, 
importuned  the  minister  in  his  behalf,  and  equally  fruitless 
were  his  own  earnest  representations.  The  promised  grant 
was  diverted  to  other  objects.  With  the  vigour  of  a 
healthy  mind  he  was.  labouring  in  his  sacred  calling  amongst 
the  inhabitants  of  Rhode  Island,  making  provision  for  his 
future  college,  and  serving  God  with  thankfulness  for  the 
blessings  he  possessed.  '  I  live  here,'  he  says,  '  upon  land 
that  I  have  purchased,  and  in  a  farm  house  that  I  have 
built  in  this  island.  *  *  *  Amongst  my  delays  and  dis- 
appointments, I  thank  God  I  have  two  domestic  comforts, 
my  wife  and  my  little  son  ;  he  is  a  great  joy  to  us,  we  are 
such  fools  as  to  think  him  the  most  perfect  thing  in  its  kind 
that  we  ever  saw.'  For  three  years  he  patiently  awaited 
the  means  of  accomplishing  his  purpose  ;  until  Bishop  Gib- 
son extracted  from  Sir  Robert  Walpole  a  reply  which  brought 
him  home.  '  If,'  said  he,  '  you  put  this  question  to  me  as 
a  minister,  I  must  assure  you  that  the  money  shall  most 
undoubtedly  be  paid  as  soon  as  suits  with  public  conve- 
nience ;  but  if  you  ask  me  as  a  friend,  whether  Dr.  Berke- 
ley should  continue  in  America,  expecting  the  payment  of 
£20,000, 1  advise  him  by  all  means  to  return  to  Europe,  and 
to  give  up  his  present  expectations.'  "* 

Thus  disappointed,  Dr.  Berkely  returned,  and  the  wretch- 
ed minister  who  had  deceived  him,  continued  till  his  retire- 
ment from  office  deaf  to  all  appeals  on  behalf  of  the  Church 
in  the  colonies  or  any  where  else  ! — The  feeling  of  the 
English  people  at  this  time  was  also  too  "  protestant,"  and 

*  Wilberforce's  History  of  the  American  Church,  pp.  155. 


10  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

the  clergy  too  thoroughly  Erastian  to  feel  much  sympathy 
for  the  distant  members  of  the  Church  who  constantly  sent 
home  earnest  appeals  for  a  colonial  episcopate.  Lulled  in 
the  arms  of  worldly  selfishness,  no  efforts  of  Berkeley,  as- 
sisted by  Bishops  Butler,  Sherlock  and  Gibson,  proved  effec- 
tual in  rousing  either  to  an  effort  for  their  American  breth- 
ren. The  thing  was  a  "  novelty, — •"  an  "  innovation"  on 
the  "  old"  mode.  They  doubtless  regarded  the  proposition 
for  supplying  North  America  with  an  independant  episco- 
pate as  a  "  popish"  scheme— for  look  !  in  South  America 
the  Spanish  Church  had  erected  (under  a  patriarch  and  six 
archbishops)  thirty-two  sees  all  filled.* 

Bishop  Berkeley  died  in  1773.  He  had  left  an  extensive 
library  in  Rhode  Island,  the  remains  of  which  still  exist. 
A  handsome  tablet  to  his  memory  is  placed  in  Trinity 
Church.  I  shall  never  forget  that  I  preached  my  second 
sermon  in  his  pulpit. 

Newport  was  one  of  the  ports  in  the  possession  of  the 
British  during  a  great  part  of  the  Revolutionary  War ;  at  the 
termination  of  which,  though  the  population  had  diminished, 
it  was  incorporated  as  a  "  city."  The  beauty  of  the  waters 
of  the  Narragansett  Bay  on  which  the  island  stands,  and 
which  is  overlooked  at  Newport,  is  well  known.  The  citi- 
zens are  hyperbolical  in  their  terms  of  admiration  of  the  fine 
bay  before  their  town ;  but  its  "  superiority  to  the  Bay  of 
Naples,  or  any  other  in  the  world"  asserted  by  a  native 
writer  must  be  decided  by  those  who,  unlike  the  author, 
have  had  the  opportunity  of  making  the  comparison.  Com- 
bining the  advantages  of  a  sufficient  depth  of  water  for  the 
largest  ships,  free  access  from  the   ocean,  and — notwith- 

*  In  Queen  Anne's  reign  the  interests  of  the  Church  were  better  understood. 
That  admirable  and  pious  Queen  favoured  a  plan  for  founding  four  bishopricks 
in  America;  two  for  the  continent,  and  two  for  the  islands;  but  her  death  put 
a  stop  to  its  accomplishment. 


NEWPORT.  11 

standing  its  size,  large  enough  for  whole  fleets — of  being 
well  land  locked  by  Cananicut  Island,  it  is  certainly  supe- 
rior as  a  harbour  to  any  other  on  the  Eastern  coast  of 
America. 

Congress  has  wisely  established  a  navy  yard  here ;  and 
government  workmen  have  long  been  engaged  in  building 
extensive  forts  for  the  defence  of  the  harbour.  The  occu- 
pancy of  Newport  by  an  enemy  would  not  now  prove  so 
easy  a  matter  as  in  1776  ! 


CHAPTER  III. 


NEW    BEDFORD. 


I  left  the  hospitable  roof  of  Captain ,  on  one  of  the 

warmest  days  in  June,  for  a  visit  to  New  Bedford  in  the 
neighbouring  state  of  Massachusetts.  The  first  part  of  the 
road  lay  through  the  fertile  island  of  Rhode,  which  forms, 
however,  an  inconsiderable  portion  of  the  state  so  called. 
Two  miles  brought  us  to  the  village  of  Middletown,  like 
every  part  of  this  island,  very  English  in  its  aspect.  At 
Portsmouth,  four  miles  further  on,  a  stone  bridge  crosses  the 
strait  (about  a  thousand  feet  in  width  at  this  point)  to  the 
main  land.  The  face  of  the  country  was  now  changed  for 
a  stony  sandy  soil,  which  appearance  continued  nearly  till 
the  coach  reached  New  Bedford,  where  we  found  dinner 
prepared  for  us  at  a  comfortable  hotel  in  the  principal  street 
of  the  town,  to  which  we  did  ample  justice. 

New  Bedford  deserves  a  fuller  notice  than  the  plan  of  my 
notes  will  allow,  or  than  it  has  yet  received  from  any  Eng- 
lish tourist.  It  is  altogether  one  of  the  handsomest  built, 
and  in  point  both  of  its  fine  situation,  and  the  superior  char- 
acter of  its  society,  one  of  the  most  attractive  towns  in  the 
United  States. 

Blizzard's  Bay,  which  indents  Massachusetts  from  the 
south  for  about  thirty-five  miles,  is  remarkable  for  receiving 
no  river  properly  so  called.  New  Bedford,  situated  near  the 
mouth  of  a  cove  or  estuary  called  Acushnet  River,  is  the 
entrepot  of  this  bay.     The  whale  oil  business  has  brought 


NEW    BEDFORD.  13 

a  great  deal  of  wealth  to  this  place,  which  is  seen  in  the 
style  of  many  of  the  private  residences,  which,  from  the  po- 
sition of  the  town  on  a  bank  declining  to  the  water's  edge, 
appear  to  great  advantage  from  the  river's  surface,  or  the 
opposite  bank,  where  another  town  of  about  a  third  of  the 
size  stands,  called  Fairhaven.  The  wealthy  citizens  of 
New  Bedford  manifest  much  taste  in  their  dwellings,  which 
are  generally  surrounded  by  spacious  gardens,  with  con- 
servatories, shrubberies,  etc. 

The  morning  after  my  arrival  at  New  Bedford,  being 
Sunday,  I  worshipped  in  the  congregational  meeting  house* 
The  "  congregationalists"  answer  in  their  views  of  church 
government  and  doctrine  to  the  ':  independents"'  amon*  the 
dissenters  in  England  ;  who  regard  the  independency  of 
each  congregation  of  Christians  as  the  correct  apostolic 
model ;  and  being  Calvinists,  differ  only  from  the  "  particu- 
lar baptists"  in  the  matters  of  infant  baptism  and  open  com- 
munion. As  Massachusetts,  which  formerly  included  New 
Hampshire  and  Maine,  was  first  colonized  by  the  puritans, 
who  were  the  progenitors  of  the  congregationalists,  this  de- 
nomination numbers,  as  might  be  expected,  many  of  the 
most  respectable  families  and  individuals  in  that  section  of 
the  country,  and  the  ministers  are  proportionably  well  ed- 
ucated. 

The  Rev.  James  A.  Roberts,  the  pastor  of  the  congrega- 
tion, who  preached  on  this  occasion,  was  a  fluent  speaker. 
I  heard  him  again  in  the  evening  when,  in  the  dpurse  of 
an  extempore  discourse,  he  showed  greater  powers  than  the 
morning's  sermon  had  brought  to  view.  The  style  was 
characterised  by  vigour  of  thought,  united  to  great  liveliness 
of  fancy,  and  a  good  share  of  elocution. 

There  was  no  church  under  episcopal  control  erected  at  the 
time  of  my  first  visit  to  New  Bedford.  The  baptist,  congre- 
gationalist,   and  unitarian,   with  the  quakers,  methodists, 


14  ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

and  a  small  company  of  Romanists,  embracing  all  the 
church  going  portion  of  the  town.  Mr.  Bent,  a  presbyter 
of  the  diocess,  was,  however,  holding  regular  services  in  a 
hired  chapel  lately  vacated  by  a  baptist  society,  to  a  feeble 
number.  Through  the  praiseworthy  exertions  of  that  gen- 
tleman the  number  of  converts  to  apostolic  order  soon  be- 
came pretty  numerous ;  and  a  fine  gothic  church  of  ample 
dimensions  in  the  principal  street  is  now  regularly  filled 
with  a  serious  and  devout  body  of  worshippers. 

It  was  at  New  Bedford  that  I  first  heard  of  the  apostolic 
Griswold,  with  whose  name  and  position  in  the  American 
Church  I  afterwards  found  the  dignitaries  and  clergy  of 
the  Church  of  England  tolerably  familiar.  As  the  town 
was  embraced  within  his  diocess,  he  was  extremely  anx- 
ious to  establish  a  congregation  at  so  important  a  station, 
and  had  several  times  preached,  and  held  services  himself 
in  the  rooms  and  "  upper  chambers"  of  the  primitive  disciples, 
"  receiving  all  that  came  in  unto  him." 


CHAPTER  IV. 

BOSTON.— THE    BISHOP    OF    THE    EASTERN    DIOCESS. 

Boston  is  another  place  which  to  an  Englishman  pre- 
sents on  first  entering  it,  a  striking  and  pleasing  similitude 
to  home.  The  streets, — the  architecture  of  the  houses,— 
the  very  looks  of  the  people  abroad,— and  the  general  as- 
pect of  almost  every  thing  that  his  eye  encounters — all  con- 
tribute to  remind  him  that,  though  in  the  new  world,  he 
is  in  the  metropolis  of  that  particular  section  of  it  appropri- 
ately styled  "  New  England." 

This  English  aspect  Avhich  marks  every  thing  in  Boston, 
is  no  where  moie  strikingly  seen  than  in  the  churches, 
whose  sombre  colored  walls  and  oaken  wood  work  with 
the  dark  rich  shade  of  drapery,  and  the  curtained  or  stained 
medium,  subduing  the  effect  of  a  Trans-atlantic  sky,  com- 
municate that  "  dim  religious  light"  which  in  an  instant 
carries  the  English  worshipper  back  to  the  glorious  fanes 
of  his  native  land. 

Such  were  my  own  sensations  on  taking  my  seat  within 
the  walls  of  Trinity  Church  the  first  time  I  entered  that 
beautiful  temple,  whose  battlemented  tower,  well  decorated 
and  substantial,  and  superb  east  window  had  several  times 
attracted  my  notice  in  my  earliest  perambulations.  On 
looking  round,  the  air  and  appearance  of  the  Worshippers 
was  sufficiently  distingue.  Numerous  family  groups  occu- 
pied the  luxuriantly  (too  luxuriantly)  furnished  pews  which 
covered  the  spacious  area.     My  immediate  conjecture  that 


16         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

this  was  the  "  fashionable  church"  of  the  aristocratic  quar- 
ter where  it  stands,  proved  on  after  enquiry  correct. 

But  who  is  that  venerable  looking  prelate  seated  in  the 
episcopal  chair  which  occupies  the  north  of  the  altar?  His 
features  and  scanty  grey  locks,  bespeak  a  man  of  perhaps 
eighty  ;  but  no !  his  upright  form  as  he  rues  to  the  awaken- 
ing notes  of  the  Te  Deum,  and  the  fixed  expression  of 
his  speaking  eye  tell  that  only  seventy  winters  have  pass- 
ed over  his  head.  Right— he  has  perforate  I  the  work  of 
eighty  years  during  forty  years  of  ministerial  service,  twenty 
three  of  which  have  been  devote  1  to  the  duties!  of  the  epis- 
copate, lie  is  the  "Bishop  of  the  Eastern  Diocess,"  and 
the  Presiding  Bishop  of  the  episcopal  church  in  the  United 
States. 

I  had  heard  and  read  of  this  distinguished  ecclesiastic, 
and  had  seen  his  picture  ;  but  the  impression  I  had  received 
was  a  faint  one  of  the  original,  which  embodied1  all  that  the 
imaginatioH  paints  as  peculiar  to  a  patriarch  or  an  apostle. 
Frequently  as  I  met  him  in  after  days,  and  much  as  I  heard 
of  his  conversation  in  the  most  retired  moments  of  his  life, 
this  impression  w.u  never  lessened.  His  features  uniformly 
expressed  sanctity  and  benevolence,  while  his  carriage  com- 
bined dignity  and  the  most  childlike  simplicity. 

The  good  bishop  was  present  on  a  visitation  of  the  Bos- 
ton parishes,  and  after  administering  the  apostolic  rite  of 
confirmation  to  a  number  of  interesting  youth  he  preached 
a  sermon,  which  received  the  deepest  attention  from  the 
numerous  assemblage.  The  words  flowed  from  his  lips 
naturally  and  fervidly,  and  more  than  one  moistened  eye 
among  the  young  recipients  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  gave  testi- 
mony to  the  force  of  his  earnest  exhortations. 

The  "  eastern  diocess"  it  is  known  to  my  older  readers, 
comprised  the  four  States  of  Maine,  New  Hampshire,  Mas- 
sachusetts, and  Rhode  Island,  since  erected  into  separate 


BISHOP    GRISWOLD.  17 

sees.  At  Bishop  Griswold's  death  in  1843,  there  were  112 
parishes  and  clergymen  in  that  district  of  country.  A 
small  number,  I  admit,  compared  to  its  population,  but  con- 
siderable when  compared  with  the  number  of  clergy  at  the 
time  he  was  consecrated  to  his  office  in  1S11 ;  when  (though 
at  that  time  the  diocess  included  Vermont)  there  were  only 
seventeen  !  And  what  was  the  entire  strength  of  the  Amer- 
ican Episcopal  Church  at  the  time  of  his  ordination  to  the 
lower  rank  in  the  priesthood  in  1795  ?  There  were  then 
only  five  bishops,  and  forty-nine  clergymen  in  the  whole 
United  States.  The  heathen  had  come  into  the  inheri- 
tance of  the  Lord,  and  laid  Jerusalem  on  heaps.  Her 
faithful  worshippers  were  become  a  reproach  to  their  neigh- 
bours ;  a  scorn  and  derision  to  them  that  were  round 
about  them.  The  vine  which  had  been  planted  in  the 
land  by  the  Church  of  England,  and  watched  by  her  with 
"  a  long  continuance  of  nursing  care,"*  had  been  broken 
down,  and  almost  plucked  up.  The  property  of  the  Church 
had  been  alienated,  and  applied  to  secular  uses.  Her  ene- 
mies had  confederated  together  against  her — Edom  with 
Moab — the  Philistines  with  the  inhabitants  of  Tyre — 
Asshur  with  the  children  of  Lot,  and  had  said,  "  Come 
and  let  us  cut  them  off  from  being  a  nation,  that  the 
name  of  Israel  may  be  no  more  in  remembrance.'''' 

Such  was  without  figure  the  position  of  the  Church  in 
the  United  States  at  the  time  that  the  late  presiding  bishop 
first  entered  on  his  clerical  duties,  and  the  future  primate 
was  obliged,  in  addition  to  very  arduous  parochial  labours, 
to  eke  out  a  slender  support  by  taking  the  charge  of  a  dis- 
trict school.  "  During  the  whole  of  my  life,"  once  remarked 
the  bishop,  "  I  have  been  constrained  to  be  economical  of 
time  ;  few  probably  of  my  age  have  spent  less  of  it  in  amuse- 
ment and  relaxation."     And  what  was  the  spectacle  which 

*  Preface  to  the  American  Prayer  Book. 

2 


18  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

this  faithful  servant  in  the  gospel  vineyard  was  permitted  to 
behold  before  he  was  taken  from  the  scene  of  his  labours, 
after  half  a  century*  of  persevering  industry,  during  which 
he  had  risen  by  successive  gradations  to  the  highest  post  of 
ecclesiastical  distinction  ? — 

The  Heavenly  Husbandman  had  beheld  and  visited  his 
vine,  the  vineyard  which  his  own  right  hand  planted  ;  it 
has  taken  deep  root,  and  filled  the  land  ;  the  hills  are 
covered  with  the  shadow  of  it,  and  the  boughs  thereof  are 
like  goodly  cedars.  She  has  sent  her  boughs  to  the  sea, 
and  her  branches  to  the  river.  Twenty-one  bishop  sand  a 
thousand  faithful  clergyt  ministering  to  fifteen  hundred 
congregations  attested  the  gracious  and  protecting  care  with 
which  the  kind  shepherd  of  Israel,  who  neither  slumbers 
nor  sleeps,  had  watched  over  the  interests  of  his  American 
flock  ! 

*  Including  the  period  of  his  lay-readership. 

t  The  number  of  American  bishops  is  now  28,  and  of  clergy  1240. 


CHAPTER  V. 


SISTER    MARY    ST.    HENRY, 


Dorchester  Heights,  occupied  by  Washington  when 
he  compelled  the  British  to  evacuate  Boston  in  the  first 
campaign  of  the  revolutionary  war,  overlook  the  city  from 
the  south,  and  afford  a  fine  view  of  the  noble  harbour  and 
its  numerous  islands. 

As  Boston  has  increased  in  population  and  wealth,  the 
limits  of  the  city  have  proportionally  extended ;  and  Dor- 
chester Heights  are  now  embraced  within  the  regular  city 
boundaries,  and  united  to  the  old  part  by  two  bridges.  The 
peninsula  was,  however,  at  the  time  of  which  I  write,  but 
partially  covered  with  houses,  and  possessed  many  delight- 
ful walks  with  country  prospects.  I  was  several  times  at- 
tracted to  this  quarter  of  the  town  to  catch  the  sea  views, 
and  explore  the  coves  which  indent  its  southern  coast. 

There  stood  on  the  northern  slope  of  the  hill,  a  Roman 
Catholic  chapel  dedicated  to  St.  Augustine.  My  course 
lay  by  this  chapel  one  Monday  afternoon,  late  in  the  au- 
tumn of  1834.  A  throng  of  people  gathered  about  the 
gates  opening  on  the  burying  ground,  seemed  to  give  inti- 
mation of  an  interment ;  nor  had  I  reached  the  turning  of 
the  road  leading  to  the  bridge,  before  the  sounds  of  funereal 
music  from  beneath  caught  my  ear,  and  the  spectacle  of  a 
lengthened  procession  crossing  it  was  distinctly  visible. 

The  music  rose  louder  on  the  ear  as  the  procession  moved 
up  the  hill.     First  came  a  cross-bearer  with  a  company  of 


20         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

juvenile  acolothists ;  next  a  numerous  choir  of  chanters, 
preceding  the  coffin,  which  was  followed  by  several  priests 
in  their  altar  vestments,  and  a  large  confraternity  of  nuns, 
"  men  of  the  holy  cross,"  sisters  of  charity,  etc. ;  the  pro- 
cession being  closed  by  a  body  of  citizens.  So  numerous 
was  the  latter  class,  that  the  line  of  procession  extended 
unbroken  from  the  chapel  to  the  bridge,  and  was  formed,  as 
I  afterwards  learnt,  of  more  than  five  thousand  persons. 

Curiosity  impelled  me  to  ascertain  whose  death  it  was 
that  had  called  forth  this  exhibition  of  sympathy,  and  with 
this  view  I  mingled  in  the  train.  I  soon  learnt  that  the 
deceased  was  a  nun  of  the  Ursuline  Convent,  of  whose  de- 
struction by  incendiaries  a  short  time  previous  I  had  heard 
much. 

The  erection  of  the  first  conventual  establishment  in  the 
New  England  States,  where  a  strong  and  almost  universal 
jealousy  towards  papacy  may  be  said  to  be  an  hereditary 
sentiment  among  the  native  population  ;  and  that  estab- 
lishment near  the  capital  of  the  state,  and  adjoining 
Banker  Hill,  was  a  highly  obnoxious  circumstance  to  the 
people  of  Charlestown  ;  and  some  of  the  abuses  incident  to 
such  establishments  coming  to  light,  the  buildings  were  one 
night  burned  to  the  ground  by  an  incensed  mob. 

No  good  citizen  will  defend  such  a  breach  of  the  peace 
in  a  community  where  all  Christians  have  an  equal  claim 
on  the  protection  of  the  laws,  in  the  exercise  of  their  relig- 
ious opinions.  Bishop  Griswold  pronounced  it  "  an  enor- 
mous outrage,  condemned  and  detested  by  every  pious  pro- 
tectant in  the  country,  and  calculated  to  excite  the  sympa- 
thy of  thousands,  and  to  tend  to  the  increase  of  such  insti- 
tutions. I  hope,"  added  the  bishop,  "  through  God's  bless- 
ing, I  may  never  have  '  little  charity'  for  any  denomination 
of  Christians,  and  especially  for  those  who  steadfastly  main- 


SISTER    MARY    ST.    HENRY.  21 

tain  so  many  of  the  essentials  of  Christianity  as  do  the  Ro- 
man Catholics."* 

The  alarm  reached  the  convent,  which  lay  about  a  mile 
from  the  town,  after  the  inmates  had  retired  to  rest.  They 
were  directed  to  leave  the  building,  no  personal  injury  be- 
ing intended  to  any  one.  One  of  the  nuns,  called  Sister  St. 
Henry,  did  not,  however,  receive  the  summons  so  soon  as 
the  rest,  and  fled,  scarcely  dressed,  from  the  building  into 
which  the  mob  were  now  rushing,  crossed  a  high  wall,  and 
losing  her  way  among  swampy  lands,  became  greatly  ex- 
hausted before  she  at  length  found  shelter  in  a  cottage 

*  It  is  due  to  the  bishop  that  I  subjoin  his  strictures  on  the  conventual  system. 
"Imprisonment  for  life  is  justly  deemed  the  greatest  of  punishments,  that  of 
death  excepted ;  many  think  that  even  this  should  not  be  excepted.     And  to  me 
it  has  seemed  strange  that  a  civilized  people,  Christians  even,  should  suffer  their 
citizens,  without  law  or  conviction  of  crime  to  be  thus  wholly  debarred  of  their 
liberty.     Is  it  right?  is  it  not  very  great  cruelty,  that  a  young  girl— because  in 
a  fit  of  enthusiasm  or  disgust  with  the  world,  or  for  any  other  cause  she  enters 
the  convent,  she  should  endure  in  consequence,  this  dreadful  punishment  ?     If 
it  is  said  that  she  is  reconciled  to  her  condition  and  happy  in  her  confinement, 
why  not  then  tear  away  the  grates,  open  the  doors  of  her  prison,  and  release 
her  from  all  restraint  ?     Do  this  and  then— and  not  till  then— shall  we  believe 
that  she  has  no  desire  for  liberty.     That  such  hopeless  confinement  has,  in  ages 
past,  caused  a  vast  deal  of  wretchedness  is  known  to  the  world.     How  much  suf- 
fering has  been  endured  in  nunneries  we  shall  not  know  till  that  day  when  the 
secrets  of  all  hearts  shall  be  disclosed,  and  the  works  of  darkness  be  brought  to 
light.     But  I  would  not  dwell  on  this :  I  am  pleased  in  believing  that  those  suf- 
ferings, and  indeed  the  number  of  convents,  are  being  diminished.     *     *     No 
one  I  believe  is  more  averse  to  persecution  than  myself;  and  though  I  view  the 
rows  of  those  who  enter  cloisters  as  sinful,  as  tempting  God,  as  swearing  that 
they  will  never  do  what  may  afterwards  appear  to  be  their  duty,  and  the  will  of 
God  respecting  them;  and  though  I  view  the  imprisonment  of  nuns  as  wholly 
unjustifiable,  I  am  neither  authorized  nor  desirous  to  judge  those  who  think  dif- 
ferently.    To  their  own  master  let  them  stand  or  foil.     As  convents  have  been 
generally  managed  I  view  them  as  prejudicial  to  morals,  and  to  religion.     Yet 
if  the  vows  and  the  imprisonment  were  discontinued  they  might  be  rendered  use- 
ful as  charitable  institutions  for  the  benefit  of  some  whose  age,  or  state  of  health, 
or  other  circumstances  render  such  an  asylum  both  convenient  and  justifiable.'' 
—The  Reformation,  pp.  100—2- 


22  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

From  this  retreat  she  was  removed,  with  the  rest  of  the  sis- 
terhood, to  General  Dearborn's  mansion  at  Roxboro,  which, 
by  the  politeness  of  its  gallant  owner,  afforded  a  temporary 
shelter  to  the  expelled  occupants  of  the  Charlestown  con- 
vent. But  the  fever  which  the  exhaustion  of  that  night 
produced  resisted  every  effort  of  medical  skill,  and  Sister 
Mary  died  after  a  few  weeks  of  patient  suffering. 

The  victim  to  popular  fury  was  beautiful  and  very  ac- 
complished ;  and  her  death  excited  warm  commiseration 
from  all  classes  ;  not  the  less  among  those  who  had  shared 
in  the  feelings  which  originated  the  act  of  violence  than 
among  Romanists  themselves  :  by  many  of  the  former  was 
she  attended  to  her  last  home.  Whilst  we  cannot,  with 
justice,  charge  the  event  of  her  death  upon  the  Charlestown 
rioters  as  its  purposed  instruments,  yet  who  can  help  shar- 
ing the  tear  of  sympathy  that  bedews  almost  every  cheek 
in  that  mournful  train  which  now  follows  the  last  remains 
of  one  so  young  and  fair ! 

The  foremost  part  of  the  procession  has  now  reached  the 
chapel,  whose  portals  are  opened  for  the  admission  of  the 
body.  The  De  profiaidis,  chanted  alternately  in  its  prog- 
ress hitherto  by  the  priests  and  choristers,  has  ceased  its 
mournful  long  drawn  notes  ;  all  heads  are  reverentially 
uncovered  as  the  clergy  enter  the  burying  ground,  and  one, 
whose  episcopal  habit  declares  him  to  be  a  bishop,  com- 
mences the  burial  service  ;  the  chapel,  under  whose  pave- 
ment the  body  of  Sister  Mary  is  to  be  interred,  is  soon  filled 
with  the  immediate  followers  of  the  corpse,  consisting  of  the 
attendants,  the  Religieuses  and  the  chief  mourners  ;  and 
as  the  lengthened  shadows  of  the  evening  become  blended 
with  the  increasing  darkness,  the  crowds  which  have  been 
augmenting  round  the  chapel  since  the  procession  halted, 
gradually  and  quietly  disperse. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


THE    NORTH    END. 


The  quarter  of  Boston  familiarly  known  as  "  the  North 
End,"  embraces  all  that  part  of  the  peninsula  on  which  the 
city  is  built  lying  north  of  Faneuil  Hall.  Like  the  east 
end  of  London,  once  the  abode  of  wealth  and  state,  it  is  now 
deserted  by  the  denizens  of  fashion.  Its  narrow  and  crook- 
ed streets,  and  the  looks  of  the  houses,  speak  of  an  age  gone 
by.  In  the  centre  of  this  neighbourhood  old  Christchurch 
rears  its  lofty  spire,  and  the  brick  tower  on  which  it  is  based, 
and  which  contains  a  fine  peal  of  bells,  is  regarded  by  the 
inhabitants  with  an  affection  truly  filial. 

Salem  Street,  in  which  Christchurch  stands,  is  the  main 
thoroughfare  of  the  North  End.  Here  the  matronly 
tenant,  and  the  youthful  miss  of  Snow  Hill,  and  the  spinster 
boarder  of  Prince  Street  and  the  North  Square  purchase 
their  finery,  to  be  displayed  among  the  throng  of  church 
goers  who  jostle  each  other  in  Salem  Street  on  Sunday. 
In  this  part  of  the  city  old  fashioned  dwelling  houses  meet 
the  eye,  with  projecting  upper  stories  and  roofs  ;  windows, 
with  small  diamond  shaped  panes  of  glass  in  leaden  frames, 
and  numerous  other  vestiges  of  antiquity. 

Copp's  Hill,  on  which  my  reader  has  doubtless  stood  ; 
transported  thither  by  the  magic  pen  of  the  novelist  Cooper, 
o/i  the  night  previous  to  the  memorable  battle  of  Bunker 
Hill,  is  in  this  quarter.  The  greatest  part  of  the  eminence 
is  occupied  as  a  burial  ground,  covered  with  a  countless 


24         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

variety  of  head  stones,  and  ruined  monuments.  On  many 
of  these  are  the  crests  and  other  heraldic  emblems  of  the 
anti-revolutionary  governors,  and  titled  residents  of  "  Mas- 
sachusetts Bay  colony." 

But  I  must  not  forget  the  church,  which  is  nearly  a  cen- 
tury and  a  quarter  old.  It  is  in  the  style  of  most  English 
churches,  with  a  spire  175  feet  high.  Some  years  ago  the 
interior  was  remodelled  by  the  vestrymen  ;  the  large  east 
window  closed  up  and  its  place  supplied  by  an  altar  piece, 
the  work  of  a  native  artist.  On  the  architrave  over  the 
chancel,  are  the  words  "  &fjis  is  none  othjcr  ll)an  tl)C  ^ottse 
of  (Bob,  anb  tl)is  is  tl)e  (Sate  of  fjcarjen,"  over  which  is  a 
finely  executed  representation  of  the  descent  of  the  Holy 
Spirit.  In  this  church  is  a  monument  and  bust  to  the  mem- 
ory of  Washington,  the  first  one  erected  in  the  country. 

I  had  been  spending  a  December  afternoon  inspecting  the 
old  burying  ground  on  Copp's  Hill,  and  was  returning  to 
my  lodgings  through  Salem  Street,  when  the  bells  of  Christ- 
church  broke  forth  into  a  merry  peal ;  and  seeing  some 
persons,  from  different  points,  directing  their  steps  towards 
the  parish  temple,  I  approached  it,  and  crossed  the  venera- 
ble portals  just  as  the  choir  commenced  the  rehearsal  of  a 
Christmas  anthem.  I  should  have  supposed  this  prepara- 
tory musical  exercise  was  the  object  of  the  open  church  but 
for  the  illuminated  chancel  and  pulpit  which  gave  intima- 
tion of  the  ensuing  service.  The  practice  of  keeping  Christ- 
mas Eve  I  found  to  be  not  an  uncommon  one  in  America  ; 
and  the  numbers  who  soon  began  to  fill  the  church  this 
evening  betokened  no  inconsiderable  degree  of  interest  in 
the  solemnities  of  the  occasion.  The  service  was  conducted 
by  two  priests,  the  youngest  of  whom  delivered  an  animated 
address  from  the  pulpit  on  the  approaching  festival  of  the 
Nativity.  Before  the  congregation  dispersed,  the  organ 
which  had  accompanied  a  full  and  very  efficient  choir  of 


CHRISTMAS    EVE.  25 

singers  in  the  Cantati  and  Deus  Miser eatuf,  again  struck 
up  in  the  notes  of  an  anthem  paraphrased  from  the  second 
chapter  of  St.  Luke. 

This  observance  of  Christmas  Eve  was  an  example  of 
reverence  for  ancient  usage  for  which  I  was  quite  unpre- 
pared in  America.  Christmas  Eve  is  a  vigil  in  the  Church 
of  England — or  to  speak  more  correctly,  it  is  marked  in  the 
English  Prayer  Book  as  such,  on  the  same  table  with  the 
evenings  preceding  fifteen  other  festivals  ;  though  (with  the 
exception  of  Easter  Eve)  observed,  I  suspect,  as  little  as  a 
vigil  as  either  of  these  evenings.  This  table  is  however 
expunged  in  the  American  Prayer  Book,  together  with  the 
names  of  all  the  Saints  in  the  English  Calendar  for  whom 
no  Collect  and  Gospel  is  appointed. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


PARENTHETICAL. 


A  few  days  after,  I  received  an  invitation  from  a  vestry- 
man of  the  parish  to  a  seat  in  his  family  pew  whenever  I 
attended  the  church,  of  which  I  several  times  availed  my- 
self ;  but  my  imperfect  acquaintance  with  the  constitution 
and  peculiarities  of  the  episcopal  Church  as  existing-  in 
America,  gave  me  at  this  time  a  distaste  for  its  worship 
which  induced  my  attendance  on  other  ministrations.  I 
regarded  it  as  a  mere  branch  of  the  English  establishment, 
which  had  survived  the  revolution  ;  unsuited  in  its  govern- 
ment, polity,  doctrines,  and  worship  to  the  country  where 
I  had  taken  up  my  abode.  Subsequent  examination  and 
study  showed  me  the  magnitude  of  this  error ;  and  brought 
to  my  more  matured  knowledge  that  the  Church  Episcopal 
as  existing  in  the  United  States,  is  in  its  framework  more 
adapted  to  the  genius  of  American  institutions  than  any 
other  denomination  in  the  country — in  its  doctrines  as  pure 
— and  in  its  worship  more  republican.  The  book  of  com- 
mon prayer  is  as  well  suited  to  the  atmosphere  of  a  repub- 
lican assembly  as  to  the  worshippers  in  the  Chapel  Royal. 

"  I  would  very  briefly  show,"  writes  Bishop  M'Coskry,* 
"  the  beautiful  analogy  which  exists  between  the  ecclesias- 
tical institutions  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  of 
the  United  States,  and  the  civil  institutions  of  the  United 
States. 

*  In  his  pamphlet  "  Bishops  Successors  of  the  Apostles."  p.  51. 


THE    AMERICAN    CHURCH.  27 

"  At  the  time  of  our  civil  revolution,  the  Church,  as  is 
well  known,  separated  herself  entirely  from  the  jurisdiction 
of  a  foreign  bishop,*  and  declared  her  independence  ;  but 
she  never  could  forget  that '  she  is  indebted,  under  God,  to 
the  English  Church  for  her  first  foundation,  and  a  long  con- 
tinuance of  nursing  care  and  protection.! 

"  Having  received  the  apostolic  succession  from  this 
Church,  by  which  she  couldin  crease  her  ministry,  and  ex- 
tend her  influence,  her  first  efforts  were  made  to  conform 
her  whole  human  orginization  and  legislation  to  that 
adopted  and  followed  by  the  people  of  this  country  in  refer- 
ence to  their  civil  government.  The  consequence  was,  that 
the  government  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  the 
United  States,  became  truly  republican  in  its  character,  as 
we  will  hereafter  see,  and  in  which  I  have  no  hesitation  in 
saying  that  the  rights  of  the  people  are  better  secured  than 
in  any  other  ecclesiastical  organization  ;  for  there  are  no 
permanent  officers,  so  far  as  the  laity  are  concerned,  but 
fresh  representatives  are  yearly  selected  by  the  people,  and 
have  a  voice  in  all  her  legislation. 

*  The  Bishop  of  London.  It  is  in  the  highest  degree  creditable  to  the  pre- 
lates who  have  since  the  separation  [which  Monsieur  of  "  The  Tablet"  will 
please  observe  was  not  a  dismemberment  of  one  branch  of  the  Church  from  its 
mother  stem,  but  a  peaceful  creation  only  of  a  separate  independent  legislature, 
conformable  with  universal  catholic  precedent]  filled  the  see  of  London,  that 
none  of  the  friendly  feeling  and  co-operation  with  the  heads  of  the  American 
Church  has  been  discontinued;  on  the  contrary  they  have  voluntarily  assumed 
nearly  as  much  interest  in  her  affairs,  and  given  as  much  time  out  of  that  de- 
manded by  the  greatly  augmented  duties  since  attached  to  the  laborious  and 
unenviable  post  of  Bishop  of  London  to  this  object  as  was  formerly  exacted  from 
them.  In  the  case  of  the  present  diocesun,  frequent  pecuniary  assistance  on 
the  most  liberal  scale  towards  the  objects  of  church  building,  etc.  has  been  added 
to  those  offices  of  friendly  welcome  and  personal  assistance  which  are  uni- 
formly rendered  to  the  American  visitors  to  England  (not  a  few)  who  are  intro- 
duced to  his  lordship's  notice. 

t  Preface  to  the  American  Prayer  Book. 


28  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

"  But  I  will  present  the  analogy  to  our  civil  govern- 
ment : — 

"  In  both,  the  power  of  government  resides  primarily  in 
the  whole  people. 

"  In  both,  the  forms  of  government  are  representative. 
In  the  Church,  however,  there  are  no  limitations  in  the  ap- 
plication of  the  principle  of  universal  suffrage. 

"  The  parish  meetings,  and  the  town  or  district  elections 
are  analogous. 

"  The  parish  vestries,  and  the  select  men,  or  common 
councils  of  the  towns  or  cities  are  analogous. 

"  The  union  of  parishes  into  dioceses,  and  the  union  of 
towns  or  countries  into  states  are  analogous. 

('  The  independence  of  the  several  dioceses,  and  the  inde- 
pendence of  the  several  states  are  analogous. 

"  The  union  of  the  several  dioceses  into  one  General 
Convention,  and  the  union  of  the  several  states  into  one 
General  Government  are  analogous. 

"  The  Diocesan  Conventions  with  their  secretaries  ;  and 
the  State  Legislatures  with  their  secretaries,  are  analogous. 

"  The  representation  in  the  Diocesan  Conventions  and 
the  representation  in  the  State  Legislatures  from  the  people 
directly,  are  analogous. 

"  The  General  Convention  of  the  United  Dioceses,  and 
the  general  Congress  of  the  United  States  are  analogous. 
The  House  of  Bishops  in  the  former  corresponding  to  the 
Senate  in  the  latter,  and  the  house  of  Clerical  or  Lay  depu- 
ties in  the  former  corresponding  to  the  house  of  Represen- 
tatives in  the  latter. 

"  But  sufficient  proof  is  here  given  to  show  how  scrupu- 
lously careful  the  Church  has  been  to  guard  as  well  as 
secure  the  rights  of  every  member  of  her  fold.  The  poor- 
est member  has  an  equal  voice  in  her  councils  with  the 


THE    AMERICAN    CHURCH.  29 

most  wealthy  and  influential,  and  no  law  is  imposed  upon 
any  without  their  own  consent."* 

The  testimony  of  another  American  bishop,  the  Right 
Rev.  Dr.  Henshaw  of  Rhode  Island,  to  this  almost  perfect 
analogy,  and  the  conservative  character  of  the  Church  epis- 
copal on  even  republican  institutions,  in  an  address  at  lay- 
ing the  corner  stone  of  a  cathedral  in  the  city  of  Provi- 
dence, his  see,  will  be  appropriately  added  to  that  of  the 
northern  bishop. 

"  While  we  intend  that  the  structure  now  commenced 
upon  this  foundation  shall  do  honor  to  the  liberality  of  its 
proprietors,  be  an  ornament  to  this  beautiful  and  prosperous 
city,  and  a  credit  to  our  common  country  ;  our  chief  hope 
is  that  it  may  be,  in  some  humble  measure,  worthy  of  the 
high  and  holy  uses  to  which  it  is  to  be  devoted. 

"  The  edifice  which  is  to  be  raised  here  will  have  a  char- 
acter stamped  upon  it  widely  different  from  that  of  the 
buildings  which  surround  it.  They  are  designed  for  the 
benefit  and  accommodation  of  man  as  an  inhabitant  of 
the  world  that  now  is,  this  is  intended  to  minister  to  his 
welfare  as  an  expectant  of  that  which  is  to  come.  They 
have  connexion  exclusively  with  the  things  of  Earth  ;  this 
will  be  chiefly  devoted  to  those  of  Heaven,  Not  only  so. 
It  will  differ  from  many  of  the  j'eligious  structures  around 
it,  not  only  in  its  style  of  architecture,  but  also  in  reference 
to  important  points  of  faith  and  order  and  worship,  in 
whose  support  and  propagation  it  will  be  employed.  The 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  although  among  us  the  eldest 
daughter  of  the  Reformation,  has  been  too  often  viewed 
with  feelings  of  distrust  and  aversion  by  her  younger  sis- 

*  That  a  Church  represented  by  its  enemies  as  incurably  aristocratic  in  its 
polity  and  constitution,  should  thus  mould  itself  to  republican  institutions  with- 
out a  change  in  its  essential  features  is  explained  by  its  being  of  divine  origin, 
and  therefore,  intended  for  "  every  nation,  and  kindred,  and  tongue  and  people." 


30         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

ters»  She  has  been  too  little  known  in  this  region  of  our 
country,  and  on  this  account,  has  been  misapprehended  and 
traduced.  She  has  no  dread  of  the  most  rigid  scrutiny  into 
her  principles  and  institutions :  for  this  has  uniformly  con- 
tributed to  her  elevation  in  the  estimation  of  the  wise  and 
good.  She  makes  no  complaint  of  those  who  oppose  her 
with  the  weapons  of  fair  and  manly  controversy ;  for  they 
serve  only  to  illustrate  the  strength  of  her  position  and  the 
granite  durability  of  her  bulwarks  and  buttresses.  But 
there  is  cause  to  blush  for  the  honour  of  our  common  Chris- 
tianity when,  after  she  has  proved  impregnable  in  the  war- 
fare of  calm  discussion  and  dignified  argument, — the  appeal 
is  changed  from  the  understanding  to  the  passions,  from 
reason  to  prejudice,  and  she  is  assailed  by  the  shafts  of 
sarcasm  and  satire  pointed  by  the  wit  of  the  grave  orators 
of  New  England  dinners,  and  the  Reverend  song-makers 
of  the  Tabernacle. 

"  We  have  reason  to  be  thankful  that  the  day  is  past 
When  our  good  puritan  forefathers  imprisoned  the  quakers, 
ostracised  the  baptists,  and  forbade  episcopalians  to  use  the 
Book  of  Common  Prayer,  because,  forsooth,  they  come  to 
this  western  world  to  enjoy  religious  liberty,  and  to  worship 
God  according  to  the  dictates  of  their  own  consciences  ! 
But  we  live  in  an  age  of  public  excitement  and  gross  preju- 
dice, unfavourable  to  the  calm  investigation  of  truth.  It 
may  not  be  amiss,  therefore,  on  the  present  occasion,  when 
we  are  surrounded  by  many  fellow  Christians  of  other 
names  to  take  a  brief  notice  of  some  of  the  popular  objec- 
tions to  our  Church,  and  attempt  to  show  that  it  is  entitled, 
at  least,  to  toleration  and  respect  in  a  free  and  enlightened 
community. 

"  One  of  the  vulgar  objections  to  our  Church  is — that  it 

is  ARISTOCRATIC. 

"  This  objection  must  be  made  either  with  reference  to 


THE    AMERICAN    CHURCH.  31 

the  nature  of  its  ministry,  the  character  of  its  govern- 
ment, or  its  practical  influence  in  society.  And  which- 
ever view  may  be  taken  of  its  bearing,  an  impartial  investi- 
gation will  show  that  it  has  its  origin  in  ignorance  or  mis- 
conception. 

"  Does  the  objection  arise  from  the  disparity  of  orders 
in  the  ministry  ?  Our  only  answer  is — that  we  consider 
the  Christian  Ministry,  as  a  Divine,  not  a  human,  institu- 
tion. We  receive  it  as  it  was  appointed  by  the  authority  of 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  transmitted  by  his  Apostles  to 
succeeding  generations.  The  same  orders  of  the  ministry 
existed  in  the  New  Testament  Church,  under  the  names  of 
apostles,  elders,  and  deacons.  The  same  orders  existed 
without  opposition  in  the  Church  universal  for  fifteen 
hundred  years  ;  and  the  same  orders  now  exist  in  every 
quarter  of  the  globe,  and  are  acknowledged  by  nine- 
teen-twentieths  of  the  Christian  world.  If  the  alleged 
odious  feature,  therefore,  be  inherent  in  the  disparity  of 
orders,  we  believe  it  to  be  one  which  no  human  au- 
thority has  the  power  to  remedy.  But  unless  the  two 
lower  orders  of  the  ministry  universally  or  generally  com- 
plain that  their  Fathers  in  Christ  become  their  oppressors, 
lord  it  over  God's  heritage,  and  govern  them  with  the  rod  of 
tyranny  instead  of  the  law  of  love ;  unless  the  people  com- 
plain that  our  ministry  is  more  intolerant,  bigoted  and  dog- 
matical— more  disposed  to  entrap  or  oppress  weak  con- 
sciences— and  more  inclined  to  impose  restraints  upon  lib- 
erty of  thought  and  action  than  that  of  other  names,  we 
shall  view  the  objection  as  a  nullity ;  and  continue  to  be- 
lieve that  the  rule  established  by  the  Head  of  the  Church 
for  the  regulation  of  his  household  is  best  adapted  to  pro- 
mote the  spiritual  good  and  the  true  liberty  of  its  mem- 
bers. 

"  Does  the  charge  of  aristocracy  refer  to  the  system  of 


32  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

our  Ecclesiastical  polity  and  government  ?  It  serves 
only  to  betray  recklessness  or  want  of  information  on  the 
part  of  the  objector.  Let  any  man  examine  the  constitu- 
tion and  canons  of-  our  Church,  and  he  will  not  fail  to  per- 
ceive the  striking  resemblance  between  them  and  the  civil 
institutions  of  this  great  confederation  of  republics.  In  our 
parochial  arrangements  for  the  annual  primary  assemblies 
of  the  people  to  elect  their  vestries  and  other  local  officers 
— behold  the  counterpart  of  our  municipal  elections.  The 
Bishop,  Standing  Committee,  and  convention  of  Clerical 
and  Lay  Delegates  in  each  Diocese,  answer  to  the  Governor, 
Council  and  Legislature  of  the  respective  States  ;  while  the 
General  Convention — composed  of  the  House  of  Bishops 
and  the  House  of  Clerical  and  Lay  Deputies,  representing 
the  various  dioceses,  and  constituting  the  supreme  legisla- 
tive power  of  all, — has  an  exact  resemblance,  in  its  general 
character  and  powers,  to  the  Congress  of  the  United  States, 
composed  of  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives. 
And  the  Presiding  Bishop  may,  to  a  limited  extent,  be  con- 
sidered as  exercising,  in  our  ecclesiastical  constitution,  pow- 
ers and  prerogatives  resembling  those  which  pertain  to  the 
chief  magistrate  of  the  Union.  While  the  rights  of  the 
clergy,  as  an  order  of  divine  appointment,  are  not  infringed 
upon,  the  rights  and  powers  of  the  laity  are  sacredly  se- 
cured. So  much  so,  that  in  this  Church  (which  some  igno- 
rantly  traduce  as  a  system  of  priestly  domination,)  not  an 
election  can  be  made,  from  the  choice  of  a  vestryman,  or  the 
licencing  of  a  deacon,  up  to  the  consecration  of  a  bishop, 
without  the  consent  and  approbation  of  the  people  ;  nor  can 
a  canon  be  enacted  or  a  rubric  changed  without  their  co-ope- 
ration. The  combined  power  of  bishops,  priests  and  dea- 
cons is  held  in  check  by  the  co-ordinate  power  of  the  laity. 
"  Is  the  charge  of  being  aristocratic  intended  to  reproach 
us  with  the  fact  that  many  of  the  more  wealthy  and  re- 


THE    AMERICAN    CHURCH.  33 

fined  and  poiverful  in  society  are  found  numbered  in  our 
flocks  ?  We  consider  it  no  reproach  to  the  Church  that  so 
many  of  the  educated  and  distinguished  are  not  slow  to  ac- 
knowledge her  excellencies,  and  feel  her  attractions.  But 
her  portals  are  alike  open,  and  her  precious  gifts  alike  of- 
fered to  the  poor  and  the  rich,  to  the  humble  and  the  ele- 
vated. They  all  meet  in  her  courts  as  upon  a  level  before 
the  Maker  of  them  all ;  and,  in  the  privileges  of  a  common 
communion,  realize  that  they  are  one  in  Christ  Jesus. 

"  Is  it  said  that  the  influence  of  our  Church  is  adverse 
to  popular  freedom  ?  We  bless  God  that  his  kingdom  is  not 
of  this  world  ;  that  the  ministers  of  this  Church  degrade  not 
their  sacred  calling  by  mingling  in  the  strife  and  animos- 
ity of  party  politics ;  and  her  people  are  left  free  to  choose 
their  own  sides,  and  form  their  own  alliances  ;  while  the 
conservative  influence  of  the  whole  body  is  felt  in  strength- 
ening the  foundations  of  order — Heaven's  first  law, — and 
cementing  the  institutions  which  bind  society  together. 

"  If  there  were  any  thing  in  the  principles  and  institu- 
tions of  our  Church  inconsistent  with  the  genius  of  our  free 
government,  it  is  passing  strange  that  it  should  have  es- 
caped the  clear-sighted  vision  of  the  Washingtons,  the 
Hamiltons,  the  Jays,  the  Pinkneys,  the  Madisons  and  the 
Marshalls*  of  a   departed   generation — and   many   of  the 

*  "  The  Church,  I  say,  which  as  American  Christians  ought  to  be  as  dear  to 
every  Churchman  as  that  country  itself.  For  as  I  write  these  lines  the  merry 
peals  of  old  Chrishchurch  bells  linger  on  my  ear ;  they  have  been  welcoming 
the  birth  day  of  our  beloved  Washington.  And  George  Washington  was  a 
protestant  Episcopalian,  a  member  of  the  holy  Catholic  Church  in  these  United 
States. 

"  Here  is  a  claim  which  the  Church  has  upon  us  as  Americans  which  ought 
not  to  be  forgotten.  In  her  organization,  she  corresponds  most  happily  with 
the  organization  of  our  country.  Sprung  as  she  has  from  the  same  source 
whence  we  derive  our  national  origin,  for  as  Churchman  and  as  Americans  we 
look  back  to  old  England ;  founded  as  the  Church  was  by  the  same  hands  that 
laid  the  corner-stone  of  our  Republic ;  boasting  as  she  does  that  her  best  loved 

3 


34         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

brightest  ornaments  of  our  legislation  and  jurisprudence  in 
the  living  one — who,  while  receiving  the  reverence  and 
honours  due  to  the  ablest  supporters  and  expounders  of  the 
liberties  of  the  country,  deemed  it  their  duty  and  privilege 
to  attend  upon  the  services  of  the  Church  and  contribute  to 
her  support." 

From  arguments  like  these,  my  objections  against  a  com- 
munion to  which  (though  I  had  received  part  of  my  educa- 
tion from  her  ministers — had  constantly  worshipped  in  her 
temples — and  had  been  taught  from  infancy  to  venerate)  I 
had  never  regularly  belonged,  were  effectually  removed. 
But  how  partial  is  the  work  in  winning  converts  to  the 
Church  in  her  apostolic  integrity,  to  reconcile  them  merely 
to  her  laws  and  usages,  and  acquit  our  glorious  Mother  in 
the  eyes  of  her  new  children  of  the  libellous  accusations, 

bishop  was  the  chaplain  of  our  Congress  ;  that  the  leader  of  the  American 
army  was  a  communicant  at  her  altar; — these  things  considered,  we  do  well  to 
think  and  speak  of  them,  and  to  feel  an  honourable  pride  both  in  the  thought 
and  speech. 

"  When,  then,  you  hear  the  members  of  the  Romish  sect  boasting  of  their 
Carroll  of  Carrollton,heax  them  patiently,  for  aright  honourable  patriot  he  was, 
and  does  honour  to  the  name  of  Romanist  which  he  bore : — but  let  these  friends 
of  ours  be  instructed,  that  to  the  Church  of  Lee,  and  Rutledgc,  and  Middleton, 
and  Jay,  and  Hamilton,  and  Madison,  and  Marshall,  and  Morris,  of  Bishop 
White  and  George  Washington,  it  belongs  to  claim  the  gratitude  of  this 
American  people. 

"  Long,  then,  may  old  Christchurch  bells  ring  their  merry  chime,  to  welcome 
the  birth  day  of  George  Washington,  a  communicant  of  the  Protestant  Episco- 
pal Church.  Old  bells,  ye  have  the  right,  for  your  music  is  the  music  of  ancient 
days ;  ye  can  chaunt  the  natal  song  of  all  the  denominations  about  you ;  and 
may  ye  remain  to  sound  the  glorious  requievi,  which  shall  tell  of  Romish  and 
dissenting  brothers,  dead  to  their  violations  of  the  Church's  unity,  and  born 
again  to  the  privileges  of  that  apostolic  branch  of  the  holy  Catholic  Church,  the 
American  Protestant  Episcopal  Church." — From  the  Rev.  William  H.  Oden- 
heimer's  charming  little  volume  "  The  True  Catholic  no  Romanist."  p.  p.  43. 

This  talented  young  preacher  and  true  hearted  Catholic  is  the  successor  of 
the  present  Bishop  of  Western  New  York  in  the  rectorship  of  St.  Peter's,  Phil- 
adelphia. 


THE    AMERICAN    CHURCH.  35 

and  the  gross  slanders  of  her  opponents.  She  needs  no 
"  Apology  !"  Her  ministry,  sacraments,  and  ritual,  are  the 
blessed  heritage,  even  of  returning  recusant  children.  As 
the  spouse  of  Christ  we  do  the  Church  dishonour  by  leav- 
ing the  argument  at  this  point,  when  we  retort  the  foul 
calumnies  of  her  schismatic  enemies  against  the  purity  of 
her  doctrines,  and  the  soundness  of  her  institutions. 

It  was,  however,  more  than  a  year  after  receiving  orders 
in  the  "  Protestant  Episcopal  American  Church,"  that  the 
true  and  actual  position  of  that  "  denomination"  was  under- 
stood. That  position  is  well  denned  by  a  distinguished 
western  presbyter*  of  the  same,  in  a  sermon  preached  in  St. 
Paul's  Church,  New  Albany,  Indiana,  on  the  ordination  of 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Wylie,  President  of  Indiana  University,  (a 
convert  from  "  new  school"  heresy  to  catholic  truth)  in 
1841,  with  which  I  close  this  chapter  of  extracts. 

"  My  western  hearers,  be  not  startled  by  the  word,  '  Cath- 
olic.'' Our  Saviour  Christ  established  but  one  Church  upon 
the  earth.  This  extended  itself  into  various  countries,  and 
in  them  continued  one.  It  filled  the  land  of  England 
among  others,  where  it  kept  at  divers  times  more  or 
less  of  its  original  purity  ;  and  at  the  period  of  the  Refor- 
mation especially,  while  it  adhered  to  every  essential  of  its 
primitive  ordinance  and  belief,  dropt  certain  modern  corrup- 
tions. It  was  one  before  doing  so,  one  in  doing  so,  one  af- 
ter doing  so.  Its  bishops  led,  and  the  clergy  and  laity 
united  in  the  reform.  Of  its  more  than  nine  thousand  min- 
isters, only  one  hundred  and  twenty-seven  refused.  As  the 
Old,  Great,  Common  Church  of  the  land,  it  so  acted — -that 
is  as  the  Catholic  Church ;  for  this  word  is  not  strictly  a 
name,  but  expresses  nature,  somewhat  as  the  word  Christ 
expresses  office.  This  word  catholic  means  general ;  and 
when  applied  to  the  Church  in  any  nation  it  testifies  that 
*  The  Rev.  Samuel  Rovsevelt  Johnson,  Rector  of  Lafayette, 


36         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

such  Church  is  the  true  representative  in  that  land  of  the 
ancient  General  Catholic  Church,  which  from  Jerusalem 
spread  out  into  all  countries  ;  that  it  is  a  true  part  and 
member  of  that  one  great  society  which  Christ  Jesus 
founded,  and  left  upon  the  earth  as  his  church  ;  that  it  is 
a  religious  society  not  different  from  that,  either  by  having 
separated  from  its  fold,  or  by  being  an  entirely  new  inven- 
tion, or  a  construction  independent  and  somewhat  similar  in 
pattern.  Had  the  Church  in  England  of  itself  assumed  any 
other  name,  or  had  another  been  imposed  by  the  world,  it 
would  still  be  the  old,  general  (or  catholic)  Church  of  Christ 
in  England.  So  it  remained  ;  and  for  some  time,  the  one, 
only  religious  body  in  the  land.  From  it,  after  certain  years, 
the  followers  of  the  Roman  Obedience,  at  the  command  of 
their  foreign  head,  separated  into  schism  ;  after  that,  the 
puritans  and  others  dissenting,  followed  them  in  the  same 
bad  way — bad  because  Christ  had  forbid  such  separation, 
had  commanded  unity  as  a  body.  But  it  has  ever  kept  on 
its  steady  course,  continuing  to  be  Avhat  it  ever  was, — the 
Old  Great,  Common,  General,  Catholic,  Apostolic  Church 
of  our  Saviour  Christ  in  England. 

"  We  are  Anglo-Saxons  as  a  nation,  of  the  same  stock 
and  language,  and  to  us  the  same  Church  belongs.  It 
alone  had  the  natural  right  to  be  guardian  over  our  spiritual 
welfare,  and  provide  for  us  Christ's  ordinances  ;  and  that 
care  it  has  exercised.  What  claim  has  the  Italian  Church 
over  an  Anglo-Saxon  Christian  nation  in  America,  especially 
where  its  own  native  Church  was  in  possession,  and  her 
chief  pastors  were  "  keeping  watch  ?"  What  can  elevate 
separatists  in  the  mother  land  to  be  the  old,  true  Church 
here  ?  We  who  are  named  "  episcopalians"  are  the  legiti- 
mate offspring  of  that  ancient  mother ;  our  bishops  were 
consecrated  by  her  bishops  ;  our  ministry  is  derived  from 
Christ  through  her  ;  from  her  we  spring  as  child  from  the 


THE    AMERICAN    CHURCH.  37 

mother,  of  the  same  blood,  nature  and  spiritual  inheritance. 
We  form  not  one  out  of  many  Christian  denominations,  but 
are  the  original  Christian  Family  from  which  the  other  de- 
nominations separated,  contrary  to  the  Saviour's  will  and 
ordinance  ;  they  are  sects — we  the  church.  Christians 
removing  from  their  own  country  into  another,  never  in  an- 
cient times  thought  of  starting  as  a  new  "  denomination" 
there,  but  always  fell  into  the  regular  ranks  of  Christ's  com- 
mon Church.  Thus  ours  is  the  true,  and  only  Catholic 
Church  of  Christ  in  these  United  States,  and  to  it  all  Christ's 
disciples  should  belong.  This  ought  to  be  our  only  desig- 
nation, and  then  others  and  we  ourselves  would  see  our 
claim  and  our  position  aright.  The  history  of  a  few  years, 
or  one  selected  principle  should  not  in  any  nation  give  name 
to  the  Church  of  Christ,  which  belongs  to  all  Christian  cen- 
turies, and  which  has  all  the  elements  of  truth.  If  it  may 
be  named  "  The  Protestant  Episcopal,"  because  it  has  pro- 
tested against  Roman  additions,  and  testified  to  the  Episco- 
pal Succession,  as  well  might  it  be  named  "  The  Witnessing 
Baptist,"  because,  beyond  any  other  religious  society  in  the 
land,  it  clearly  and  fully  witnesses  true  Christian  baptism ; 
— testifying  to  the  truth  of  its  administration,  excluding  none 
of  its  lawful  modes ; — testifying  to  the  truth  as  to  its  subjects, 
excluding  none  of  its  lawful  subjects  ; — testifying  in  its  in- 
structions to  the  truth  of  its  nature,  excluding  none  of  its 
lower  offices,  or  its  higher  or  supernatural  mysteries  of  gift 
and  nature ; — testifying  to  the  very  essence  of  the  sacra- 
ment by  the  unquestionable  validity  of  the  ministry  which 
administers  the  sacrament.  I  look  for  it,  that  the  church- 
men in  the  West,  the  plain-spoken,  straight-forward  West, 
which  ever  likes  to  call  known  things  by  right  names,  will 
be  those,  who  knowing  that  they  have  the  reality,  will 
take    the   lead    in   claiming   the    rightful   name   of    the 

CHURCH    OF    CHRIST,  THE  CATHOLIC,  IN  AMERICA." 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


BOSTON    CHURCHES. 


Having  introduced  my  readers  to  two  of  the  Boston 
churches,  I  will  add  a  short  historical  and  descriptive  notice 
of  several  others.  The  next  in  importance  to  Christchurch 
is  St.  Paul's ;  it  stands  in  Tremont  street  facing  "  the  com- 
mon," as  a  park-like  enclosure  of  seventy-five  acres  laid  out 
and  planted  like  the  Green  Park,  is  familiarly  called.  This 
beautiful  church,  constructed  of  fine  grey  granite,  has  been 
built  after  a  Grecian  model.  A  projecting  portico  is  sup- 
ported by  six  Ionic  columns  of  Potomac  stone  approached 
by  a  flight  of  steps.  Its  general  external  appearance  is 
pure  and  classic. 

"  The  interior  of  St.  Paul's"  writes  another  pen  "  is  re- 
markable for  its  simplicity  and  beauty,  and  the  materials 
of  which  the  building  has  been  constructed  give  it  an  in- 
trinsic value  and  an  effect  which  have  not  been  produced 
by  any  imitations  of  the  classic  models  that  have  been  at- 
tempted of  bricks  and  plaster  in  other  cities.  The  erection 
of  this  church  may  be  considered  the  commencement  of  an 
era  in  the  art  in  Boston  ;  and  although  from  its  situation  it 
is  somewhat  obscured,  the  beauties  it  displays  have  al- 
ready had  a  sensible  influence  on  taste  in  architecture." 

St.  Paul's  church  was  several  years  in  erection  ;  it  was 
consecrated  by  the  bishop  of  the  diocess  on  the  30th  of 
June  1820,  and  Dr.  Samuel  F.  Jarvis,  the  first  rector  of  the 
parish,  was  instituted  on  the  7th  of  the  following  month. 


BOSTON    CHURCHES.  39 

This  gentleman  has  had  three  successors ;  Dr.  Alonzo 
Potter,  now  Bishop  of  Pennsylvania,  who  succeeded  in 
1826,  Dr.  John  S.  Stone,  who  became  rector  in  1832,  and 
Dr.  Vinton,  the  present  rector. 

Gracechurch  stands  half  way  between  St.  Paul's  and 
Trinity,  in  the  elevated  part  of  the  city.  Its  design  is  ex- 
tremely chaste ;  the  gothic  towers,  and  outward  embellish- 
ments making  it  a  great  ornament  to  that  section,  which  is 
principally  the  abode  of  wealth,  and  comfortable  independ- 
ence, though  second  in  its  "  aristocratic"  pretensions  to  the 
south  quarter  in  which  Trinity  stands. 

The  exterior  of  Gracechurch  is  in  keeping  with  its  ex- 
ternal appearance.  A  plain  Latin  cross  occupies  the  centre 
compartment  of  the  chancel  wall.  Mr.  Clark  the  pastor  of 
this  consecration  when  I  lived  in  Boston,  is  now  the  rector 
of  St.  Andrew's  in  Philadelphia,  where  he  succeeded  his 
namesake,  to  whose  skill  in  popular  oratory  he  adds  chast- 
er, and  a  more  concise  and  logical  style  of  composition. 

St.  Matthew's  church. — The  parish  is  situated  in  the 
south  suburb  of  the  city,  separated  from  the  old  town  by  an 
arm  of  the  sea,  though  now  incorporated  within  its  muni- 
cipal jurisdiction  and  called  South  Boston.  It  was  or- 
ganized in  1816  and  the  church  edifice  was  completed  1818  ; 
it  is  a  plain  brick  building  with  a  handsome  interior.  The 
Rev.  Dr.  John  L.  Blake,  was  the  first  rector ;  lately  suc- 
ceeded by  the  Rev.  Joseph  H.  Clinch.  Dr.  Blake,  now  at 
New  York,  is  a  scholar  of  some  eminence,  and  the  author 
of  numerous  elementary  and  other  books  used  in  the  com- 
mon schools  of  the  United  States. 

Two  free  churches,  erected  at  the  expense  of  the  Church 
Missionary  Society,  for  the  use  of  the  poor,  and  transient 
residents  in  the  opposite  quarters  of  the  city  where  they  are 
situated.  All  the  sittings  in  these  churches  are  free;  the 
clergyman  being  sustained  from  the  same  source.     A  Sun- 


40  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

day  School  of  six  or  seven  hundred  children  is  supported 
by  each,  under  the  superintendence  of  the  churchwardens. 
Dr.  Eaton  was  the  minister  of  the  first  free  church,  which 
stands  in  Franklin  avenue,  at  the  time  of  my  residence  in 
the  city.  His  place  is  now  supplied  by  Mr.  Wells.  Mr. 
Croswell  is  minister  of  the  other. 

Church  of  the  Messiah. — I  give  this  "  church"  a  place  in 
the  present  list  for  the  sake  of  completeness.  No  building 
was  erected  by  the  parish  when  I  left  Boston  ;  and  I  have 
never  been  able  to  learn  when  it  was  constructed,  what  site 
it  occupies,  or  what,  (if  it  is  in  existence)  are  its  architec- 
tural pretensions.  The  Rev.  George  M.  Randall,  an  alum- 
nus of  the  General  Theological  Seminary  and  a  young 
man  of  some  promise,  is  the  rector  of  the  new  parish. 

Trinity  Church  now  contains  the  episcopal  chair.  The 
present  bishop  having  been  elected  rector  of  the  same  con- 
jointly with  his  elevation  to  the  mitre.  He  is  assisted  in 
the  parochial  duties  by  the  Rev.  John  L.  Watson.  Bishop 
Eastburn  is  the  fourth  head  of  the  diocese.  His  predeces- 
sors are  Bishop  Bass,  consecrated  1797,  Bishop  Parker,  con- 
secrated 1804,  and  Bishop  Griswold,  consecrated  1811. 
The  Church  is  rapidly  gaining  in  the  preference  of  the  best 
classes  in  Boston,  who  have  lost  their  faith  in  "  unitarian- 
ism"  since  the  further  defection  of  several  amongst  its 
principal  ministers,  in  adopting  German  Neology.  A  few 
years  will  doubtless  see  a  large  increase  to  the  Church  from 
the  ranks,  both  of  Socinianism,  and  Congregationalism. 
The  present  bishop  has  been  elected  on  I  believe  two  occa- 
ions  to  the  chaplaincy  of  the  State  Legislature — a  favour- 
able omen  !     He  is  an  Englishman  by  birth. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


BOSTON    SECTARIES. 


For  several  months  after  I  reached  Boston,  I  continued 
a  former  habit,  acquired  during  a  residence  in  London,  of 
frequenting  different  places  of  worship  in  turn  ;  though  an 
acquaintance  formed  on  my  first  arrival  with  an  estimable 
clergyman  of  the  Roman  communion  led  me  oftener  into 
church  where  he  officiated  than  any  other.  I  occasionally 
attended  a  baptist  meeting  house  in  which  the  distin- 
guished Dr.  Sharp  preached,  and  derived  much  pleasure 
from  his  clear  and  happy  mode  of  exposition  ;  for  though 
belonging  to  the  old  (i.  e.  Calvinist)  school  in  that  denomi- 
nation, I  never  heard  him  broach  the  peculiar,  and  to  me, 
offensive  dogmas  of  his  party. 

One  evening  I  found  myself  within  the  walls  of  a  chapel 
not  far  from  Dr.  Sharp's,  which  had  been  hitherto  unob- 
served by  me.  The  preacher  on  the  occasion  was  a  fervid 
clear-headed  reasoner,  whose  style  of  address  enchained  me 
by  its  abundant  and  very  apposite  quotations  from  Holy 
Writ ;  and  induced  a  regular  attendance  for  a  time  on  his 
ministrations.  He  belonged  to  the  "  General  Baptist"  sect, 
commonly  called  "  free-will  baptists,"  from  their  opposition 
to  the  Calvinistic  tenets  of  necessity,  absolute  decrees,  rep- 
robation etc.  In  England,  I  am  informed,  this  body  oc- 
cupy a  respectable  position  amongst  the  dissenters  for  their 
zeal  and  piety,  and  the  learning  of  their  ministers  ;  excel- 
ling in  the  latter  particular  the  "  Particular"  or  Calvinistic 


42  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

baptists ;  though  the  case  with  regard  to  ministerial  attain- 
ments seems  to  be  reversed  in  the  United  States.  There 
are,  however,  several  preachers  in  this  denomination 
(amongst  whom  Messrs.  Cheney,  Phalen  and  Hiram  Brooks 
stand  foremost)  who  had  few  equals  in  the  American  pulpit. 
Mr.  H ,  also,  the  pastor  at  this  time  of  the  Boston  con- 
gregation, was  an  original  thinker  and  a  skilful  orator,  well 
armed  in  all  the  points  of  doctrinal  controversy. 

The  standards  of  this  sect  on  the  subjects  of  the  atone- 
ment, justification,  freewill,  &c.  are  strictly  Armenian ; 
similar  to  those  of  a  large  class  in  the  Anglo  and  Anglo- 
American  Churches ;  after  which  the  form  of  church  gov- 
ernment is  more  nearly  framed  than  that  of  any  other  non- 
episcopal  body.  Three  orders  of  ministers*  govern  their 
congregations,  viz.  messengers,t  elders,t  and  deacons  ;§  the 
former  of  whom  exercise  a  species  of  episcopal  oversight 
over  the  others  ;  such  as  the  members  assert  was  assigned 
to  the  higher  grade  of  ministers  in  the  early  Church  ;  though 
the  form  of  their  ecclesiastical  government  is  nominally 
congregational.  Simplicity,  moral  purity,  and  missionary 
zeal  are  the  characteristics  of  these  excellent  unobtrusive 
Christians.  No  other  prefix  is  applied  to  their  ministers, 
or  used  by  them  than  the  official  titles  of  "  elder"  or  "  dea- 
con ;"  and  their  aim  is,  at  least,  to  conform  in  every  feature 
of  their  system  to  apostolic  precedent.  One  instance  of 
this  exists  in  the  custom  of  washing  each  others'  feet,|| 
which  is  practised  in  some  of  the  congregations. 

There  are  numerous  other  sects  in  Boston,  many  of 
whose  temples  form  a  conspicuous  feature  among  the  ar- 

*  The  threefold  ministry  is  now  almost  confined  to  the  English  General  Bap- 
tists.    See  Evans'  Sketch,  p.  83,  and  Elder  Robinson's  "  History." 
i  Philippians  ii.  25.    Corinthians  viii.  23. 
t  1  Timothy  v.  17,  22.    Titus  i.  5. 
§  Acts  vi.  1  —  6.     Philippians  LI.     1  Tim.  iii.  8—12. 
II  St.  John  xiii.  5—14.     1  Tim.  v.  10. 


BOSTON    SECTARIES.  43 

chitectural  embellishments  of  the  town.  The  most  con- 
siderable in  numbers  and  influence  is  the  "  Unitarian," 
though  a  considerable  portion  of  this  sect  has  since  lapsed 
into  "  transcendentalism,"  a  form  of  heresy  fully  exposed 
by  several  late  writers.  Happily  amidst  this  confusion  of 
tongues  the  Church  is  every  day  gaining  strength  in  the 
New  England  metropolis. 


CHAPTER  X. 

SOME  NATURAL  AND  ARTIFICIAL  FEATURES  OF  BOSTON. 

A  winter  in  Boston  would  be  very  agreeable  but  for 
the  extreme  cold  ;  which  during  my  first  winter  there  fre- 
quently caused  a  fall  in  the  thermometer  of  20  degrees 
below  zero. 

It  is  to  strangers  a  matter  of  surprise  that  the  climate  of 
the  United  States  should  differ  so  materially  from  the  same 
parallel  of  latitude  in  the  eastern  continents.  But  the 
theory  of  meteorology  as  affecting  the  temperature,  in  con- 
junction with  the  proximity  of  mountains  and  bodies  of 
water,  has  been  long  since  satisfactorily  explained.  I  read 
an  ingenious  treatise  on  the  climate  of  North  America,  in 
which  the  writer  aims  to  establish  that  it  exhibits  the 
same  specific  difference  found  to  exist  in  similar  situations 
in  Europe  and  Asia.  However  correct  the  position,  it  is 
difficult  to  persuade  one's  self  during  the  winter  season  at 
Boston,  that  you  are  in  the  same  latitude  with  Oporto, 
Rome,  and  Adrianople. 

This  deduction  from  the  pleasure  of  open  air  exercise 
is  greatly  counterbalanced  by  the  literary  and  scientific 
institutions  with  which  the  city  abounds  ;  which  added  to 
the  fact  that  Boston  possesses  more  schools  than  any  other 
place  of  its  size  in  the  world,  has  doubtless  acquired  for  it 
the  title  of  "  the  literary  emporium"  of  the  western  world. 
The  Historical  Society,  the  Athenaeum  and  the  Academy 
of  Fine  Arts,  are  well  endowed  substantial  establishments, 


RAINSFORD.  45 

as  I  can  testify ;  possessing  each  an  extensive  library. 
There  are  other  minor  societies  for  the  promotion  of  litera- 
ture, besides  (at  the  time  of  which  I  write)  ten  daily,  and 
about  thirty  weekly  newspapers,  thirty  monthly  or  semi- 
monthly magazines,  etc.  ;  sixty  periodical  prints  regu- 
larly issued  in  a  city  with  scarce  a  hundred  thousand  in- 
habitants ! 

Boston,  to  be  seen  to  the  greatest  advantage,  should  be 
approached  from  the  sea. — European  visitants  by  the  mail 
steamers,  will  meet  with  few  sights  in  their  whole  tour 
through  the  United  States  to  surpass  the  spectacle  which 
is  presented  on  passing  Nantasket.  The  voyager  enters 
a  harbour  of  nearly  eight  square  miles  in  extent,  covered 
with  a  hundred  islands,  several  of  them  bristling  with  for- 
tifications. The  eye  is  filled  with  the  changing  scene  of 
enchantment,  till  the  Massachusetts  metropolis  appears  in 
sight.  The  dome  of  the  State  House  rises  higher  than  any 
other  object ;  the  foundation  of  the  building  being  more 
than  a  hundred  feet  above  the  level  of  the  water.  Around 
the  city,  which  is  almost  insular,  are  extensive  piers  and 
wharves  ;  and  as  ships  of  the  largest  class  can  ride  securely 
in  the  harbour,  Boston  is  incomparably  better  situated  for 
commerce  than  New  York. 

Rainsford  Island,  on  which  the  quarantine  hospital 
stands,  is  six  miles  from  the  city.  The  quarantine  system 
of  Massachusetts  is  famed  for  being  one  of  the  most  per- 
fect in  the  world ;  and  this  beautiful  island  is  an  evidence 
that  the  opinion  is  well  founded.  There  is  a  resident 
physician  at  Rainsford  from  June  to  September  inclusive, 
and  a  keeper  who  has  oversight  of  all  property  landed. 
During  the  quarantine  months  vessels  are  only  detained 
long  enough  for  ventilation.  The  red  flag  is  the  signal 
for  them  to  come   into  the  roads  for  examination.     The 


46  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

island  is  provided  with  wharves,  at  which  a  number  of 
vessels  can  discharge  their  loads  at  the  same  time. 

The  hospital  is  plainly  but  comfortably  furnished,  and 
attached  to  it  are  warehouses  for  the  convenience  of  ship- 
masters. The  physician's  residence  is  a  tastefully  built 
cottage,  seated  on  a  convenient  elevation  for  overlooking 
the  other  buildings,  and  securing  an  extensive  sea-view. 
The  keeper's  house  used  as  a  tavern,  and  provided  with 
a  reading-room  well  supplied  with  newspapers.  There  are 
also  handsome  and  commodious  edifices,  with  promenades, 
piazzas,  etc.,  for  fever  and  small- pox  patients.  In  brief, 
Rainsford  Island  with  its  comfortable  buildings,  its  gardens, 
orchards,  and  pleasant  walks,  possesses  as  much  to  recon- 
cile any  one  to  the  delay  which  the  quarantine  laws  may 
render  necessary  as  a  wise  and  benevolent  municipal  gov- 
ernment could  supply. 


CHAPTER  XL 

LOWELL. — NASHUA. — MERRIMACK. — AMHURST. — GOFFS- 
TOWN. HOPKINTON.— CONTOOCOCKVILLE. 

Towards  the  close  of  the  summer  of  1835  I  made  a 
tour  through  parts  of  Massachusetts  and  New  Hampshire. 
Leaving  Boston  by  the  Lowell  railroad,  the  cars  achieved 
the  distance  of  twenty  miles  to  the  "  Manchester  of  Amer- 
ica" within  the  hour.  The  ride  presents  few,  if  any  ob- 
jects of  interest  or  picturesque  beauty.  Pine  woods,  and 
hop  fields  making  up  nearly  all  the  view. 

Carrying  the  above  cognomen  in  my  mind  I  experienced 
no  disappointment  on  reaching-  Lowell,  where  all  the  marks 
of  a  thriving  manufacturing  town  meet  the  eye.  About 
thirty  mills  of  immense  size  are  in  full  operation.  The 
streets  are  handsomely  built,  and  at  the  regular  hour  for 
meals,  when  the  operatives  are  dismissed,  present  an  ani- 
mated appearance  from  the  crowds  which  pour  through 
the  public  thoroughfares,  whose  neat  and  comfortable  ap- 
pearance certainly  contrasts  very  strongly  with  the  filthy 
and  squalid  looks  of  the  same  class  in  England. 

Here  were  about  nine  thousand  work-people  regularly 
employed  in  these  mills,  two  thirds  being  females,  who  re- 
ceive, on  an  average,  nineteen  shillings  weekly ;  the  wages 
of  the  other  sex  averagiug  at  thirty-two  shillings.  The 
principal  articles  of  manufacture  are  sheetings,  calicoes, 
broadcloths  and  carpets ;  though  in  several  of  the  mills 
brass,  copper  and  tin  wares   are  produced,      The  city  is 


48  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

situated  on  the  River  Merrimack  at  its  junction  with  the 
Concord.  The  whole  fall  of  water  is  thirty  feet ;  sufficient, 
it  is  estimated,  to  carry  eight  or  ten  more  mills,  which  a 
few  years  will  probably  see  erected. 

Meeting  some  former  associates  at  Lowell,  I  extended 
my  residence  much  beyond  the  period  I  had  assigned  ; 
and  thus  had  an  opportunity,  which  I  improved,  of  seeing 
its  society,  and  of  learning  its  moral  and  religious  aspect. 
There  was  a  large  and  influential  congregation  of  episcopa- 
lians, whose  church  then  formed  the  greatest  ornament  of 
the  city,  a  good  example  of  English  rural  church  architec- 
ture, with  heavy  battlemented  tower,  and  a  tasteful  interior. 
Mr.  Edson,  the  rector  of  the  parish  has  held  it  since  its  first 
establishment.  He  was  indefatigable  in  his  parochial  la- 
bours, an  excellent  preacher,  and— an  efficient  Sunday 
School  super intendant.  The  Sunday  School  of  St.  Ann's, 
which  I  several  times  visited,  was  at  this  time,  and  doubt- 
less continues  the  largest  in  the  diocess.  I  witnessed  the 
first  efforts  to  originate  a  new  parish  in  another  quarter  of 
the  town  where  church  room  was  much  needed,  which  has 
since  been  completed.     The  parish  is  named  St.  Luke's. 

I  also  accompanied  my  host  several  times  to  the  "  First 
Congregational"  meeting  house,  in  which  a  Mr.  Blanchard 
then  preached  to  the  largest  congregation  in  the  city.  His 
pulpit  talents  and  learning  joined  to  unostentatious  piety, 
made  him  a  popular  man  in  the  circles  of  refinement.  I 
frequently  met  him  at  home  and  elsewhere  ;  and  am  con- 
strained to  add  that  by  no  one  could  the  universal  favour 
and  admiration  of  his  fellow  citizens  be  borne  with  greater 
meekness,  or  more  unaffected  diffidence. 

The  road  from  Lowell  to  Nashua  follows  the  course  of 
the  Merrimack,  and  constantly  afforded  us  fine  views  of 
that  beautiful  river.  The  spectacle  which  the  latter  town 
presented  from  an  eminence  which  the  coach  reached  be- 


AMHURST.  49 

fore  entering  it,  was,  however,  the  most  picturesque  one  in 
the  ride.  It  stands  on  a  river  of  the  same  name,  which 
falls  into  the  Merrimack.  Nashua  is  another  manufac- 
turing town.  About  1,500  operatives  are  employed ;  popu- 
lation 6000.  I  spent  the  rest  of  the  day  in  a  survey  of  the 
town  and  its  suburbs. 

The  next  morning  I  took  the  stage  for  Merrimack,  cele- 
brated as  the  place  where  the  first  Leghorn  bonnets  were 
manufactured.  I  was  informed  that  some  of  these  bonnets 
made  by  the  inventors,  Misses  Burnaps,  have  fetched  fifty 
dollars  in  Boston.  Finding  another  conveyance  to  Amhurst, 
in  the  afternoon,  I  reached  that  place  just  before  dark,  and 
was  put  down  at  a  wide  low  roofed  inn  on  the  side  of  a 
spacious  green,  occupying  the  centre  of  the  town.  In  the 
morning  (Sunday)  I  entered  a  huge  white  meeting  house 
standing  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  green ;  which,  like  all 
the  old  New  England  "meeting  houses,"*  though  rejoicing  in 
a  tower  with  its  single  bell,  was  both  externally  and  inter- 
nally as  unlike  an  old  English  church  as  possible.  The 
minister  derived  importance  from  occupying  throughout  the 
seivice  an  immense  pulpit  which  occupied  the  place  of  the 
altar  ;  heavy  galleries  projected  from  the  walls.  The  ser- 
mon was  written,  and  strongly  Calvinistic  in  its  complexion 
— or  "  orthodox,"  as  the  predestinarian  creed  is  commonly 
termed  in  New  Hampshire,  where  the  congregationalists, 
originally  forming  the  established  order,  though  compara- 
tively reduced,  are  still  a  numerous  body. 

Amhurst  is  an  old  town,  named  before  the  revolutionary 
war  after  Lord  Jeffrey  Amhurst.  It  has  given  birth  to  sev- 
eral eminent  men ;  among  them  the  Hon.  Moses  Nichols, 
who  served  under  General  Stark  in  the  battle  of  Bennington. 

*  Or  "  churches"  as  they  are  beginning  to  be  called  in  the  cities  and  towns 
of  America,  though  the  term  as  applied  to  buildings  was  repudiated  by  the  con- 
gregationalists till  lately. 

4 


50  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

I  left  it  on  Monday  morning  for  Goffstown,  twelve  miles  dis- 
tant, at  which  place  I  had  promised  a  friend  to  make  a 
short  tarry.  It  is  a  nourishing  village,  surrounded  by  ex- 
tensive fields  of  Indian  corn,  rye,  and  barley,  though  I  did 
not  see  an  ear  of  wheat  for  several  days  of  my  ride  to- 
gether. On  reaching  Goffstown  I  found  many  of  the  in- 
habitants attending  a  "  protracted  meeting,"  held  by  the 
methodists,  which  had  lasted  for  a  fortnight,  and  which  the 
more  intelligent  of  the  neighbours  thought  it  high  time  to 
bring  to  a  close.  But  the  excitement  was  still  at  its  height, 
and  fresh  relays  of  ministers  continued  to  arrive  to  further 
"  the  work"  which  was  going  on. 

Crossing  the  Piscataguay  ;  a  romantic  river,  which 
branches  from  the  Merrimack,  a  ride  of  between  twenty 
and  thirty  miles  brought  us  to  Hopkinton  in  the  county  of 
Merrimack,  seven  miles  from  Concord,  the  capital  of  the 
state.  It  is  named  after  Hopkinton  in  Massachusetts,  from 
which  place  it  received  its  first  settlers,  just  a  century  ago. 
It  was  Saturday  evening  when  I  reached  Hopkinton,  and 
the  next  day  I  attended  the  elegant  parish  church  of  St. 
Andrew's.  The  congregation  appeared  to  embrace  merely 
the  elite  of  the  neighbourhood,  and  strongly  contrasted  in 
numbers  with  the  crowd  which  I  met  on  my  way  back  to 
the  hotel,  retiring  from  a  large  frame  meeting  house,  the 
most  conspicuous  object  in  the  town. 

In  the  evening  I  took  my  place  in  a  private  conveyance 
for  the  residence  of  a  gentleman  who  lived  on  the  Contoo- 
cock  river,  another  tributary  of  the  Merrimack.  My  friend's 
house  was  in  a  retired  situation,  on  the  outskirts  of  a  pretty 
village  named  Contoocockville,  where  a  valuable  water 
power  has  caused  several  mills  to  be  erected.  Finding 
him  gone  to  the  only  place  of  worship,  a  baptist  meeting 
house,  I  repaired  thither,  and  was  much  gratified  by  the  ex- 
ercises, which  consisted  of  several  addresses  by  members  of 


BAPTIST    MEETING    HOUSE.  51 

the  society,  and  an  exhortation  from  the  pastor,  which  for 
simplicity,  appositeness  and  tempered  fervor  combined,  I 
have  never  heard  surpassed.  Several  hymns  were  sung 
during  the  evening  ;  and  at  the  close,  I  was  introduced  to 
the  minister,  who  supped  and  slept  at  my  host's  house. 
The  next  morning  he  left  on  horseback  for  another  station 
which  he  held  jointly  with  this.  I  found  him  in  private 
what  he  had  appeared  in  the  public  meeting.  His  English 
Bible  was  his  text  book,  and  his  acquaintance  with  it  was 
sufficiently  critical  to  make  him  on  practical  points,  a  safe 
and  useful  expounder  of  its  sacred  contents  to  the  simple 
flock  over  whom  he  was  chosen.  With  good  general  infor- 
mation, he  was  not  deficient  in  scientific  research,  and  ap- 
peared at  home  on  the  popular  topics  of  the  day.  He  be- 
longed to  a  class  of  preachers,  who  (however  defective  the 
ecclesiastical  system  to  which  they  are  attached)  are  highly 
useful  in  the  moral  and  religious  influence  they  exert, 
through  their  pastoral  labours,  in  those  regions  which  the 
supineness  or  inefficiency  of  the  church  would  otherwise 
leave  a  moral  desert. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


CONCORD. EPSOM. 


The  approach  to  Concord  was  manifested  by  the  neat- 
ness and  substantiality  of  the  houses  on  the  roadside.  On 
reaching  the  hotel,  which  proved  an  excellent  one,  I  took  a 
view  of  the  State  House,  Court  House,  and  State  Prison. 
The  former  is  built  of  hewn  granite,  surmounted  by  a  gilt 
eagle  120  feet  from  the  ground  ;  erected,  I  was  told,  at  a 
cost  of  eighty  thousand  dollars.  The  State  Prison  is  of 
the  same  material,  whose  abundance  in  New  Hampshire 
has  obtained  for  it  the  appellation  of  "  the  granite  State." 
This  substantial  article  gives  to  many  of  the  churches  and 
public  buildings  in  New  England  the  same  enduring  aspect 
which  they  present  in  Scotland.  After  dinner  I  accom- 
panied a  friend  to  SewalPs  Falls  on  the  Merrimack  River 
which  flows  past  the  town,  where  a  considerable  water 
power  keeps  several  factories  in  operation.  The  lands 
round  Concord  present  a  high  state  of  cultivation. 

In  the  evening,  hearing  several  bells  ringing,  I  followed 
the  sound  of  one,  and  found  myself  seated  in  the  congre- 
gational meeting  house,  where  the  minister,  a  bilious  look- 
ing man,  was  endeavouring  by  a  pointed  address  to  get  up 
his  audience  to  the  proper  degree  of  seriousness,  the  meet- 
ing being  a  "protracted"  one.  This  was  the  first  time 
that  I  learnt  that  congregationalists  employed  this  instru- 
ment, which  I  had  heard  condemned  by  an  eminent  minis- 
ter of  that  body  at  New  Bedford ;  who  in  some  excellent 


EPSOM.  53 

remarks  relating  to  the  modus  operandi,  and  its  effects  in 
creating  converts,  exhibited  the  one  as  of  questionable  pro- 
priety and  the  other  as  only  mischievous. 

In  the  present  case,  however,  the  operator  seemed  a 
novice  at  his  work,  for  little  excitement  was  visible  in  the 
congregation.  Many  of  the  younger  hearers  looked  about 
with  a  listless  or  impatient  air ;  the  preacher  was  evidently 
throwing  away  his  efforts. 

I  spent  several  days  at  Epsom,  twelve  miles  to  the  east 
of  Concord,  at  the  hospitable  dwelling  of  a  gentleman  to 
whom  I  carried  a  letter  of  introduction.  His  house  and 
extensive  farm  were  seated  in  the  midst  of  a  rich  grazing 
country.  He  took  me  in  his  chaise  on  the  following  Sun- 
day to  a  chapel  in  the  neighbouring  village,  where  we 
found  a  number  of  farmers,  with  their  families  and  labour- 
ers in  groups  near  the  building,  awaiting  the  arrival  of  the 
minister.  He  shortly  appeared  on  horseback,  and  was  at 
once  surrounded  by  his  people.  There  was  only  an  hour's 
recess  between  the  two  services,  the  entire  congregation 
remaining  until  the  close  of  the  second.  The  sermons 
were  plain  and  practical ;  though  the  afternoon's  discourse 
would  be  called  controversial  by  a  captious  annotator ; 
being  partly  directed  against  the  Calvinian  theory  of  a 
limited  atonement.  The  preacher  proved  demonstratively 
that  the  atonement  of  Christ  was  for  all;  stating  that  it 
was  necessary  to  clear  this  ground  before  his  message  of 
invitation  to  all  to  accept  this  atonement. 

The  eminently  pious  Thomas  Thomason  relates  in  the 
account  which  he  has  given  us  of  his  examination  before 
the  committee  of  the  Elland  Fund,  by  which  he  was  carried 
through  college,  and  prepared  for  orders,  that  the  points 
which  separate  Calvinists  and  Arminians  were  not  even 
pressed  by  his  examiners,   though  they  were  Calvinists 


54         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

themselves,*  and  he  had  hitherto  belonged  to  the  Wesleyan 
Society. 

In  reply  to  the  question  by  Mr.  Cecil,  whose  opinions  he 
followed?  Mr.  Thomason  replied,  "Indeed,  Sir,  I  have 
never  read  a  book  on  the  subject,  except  the  Bible,  in  my 
life.  I  have  always  made  it  a  point  to  leave  those  things, 
as  I  think  it  productive  of  evil  to  dive  into  intricacies  which 
can  never  be  perfectly  cleared." 

"You  think  very  rightly,"  answered  Mr.  Cecil,  "I  have 
acted  in  the  same  manner  myself.  I  make  it  a  point  never 
to  handle  these  things  in  jniblic." 

The  rule  might  do  for  England,  where  the  points  of 
difference  between  the  national  Church  and  the  great 
body  of  dissenters  are  chiefly  political,!  and  where  hyper- 

*  Messrs.  Cecil  and  Foster. 

1  Such  was,  at  least,  the  profession  of  the  more  intelligent  amongst  the  dis- 
senters a  few  years  ago;  and  the  sentiment  has  been  familiar  to  the  author 
from  the  lips  of  more  than  one  esteemed  relative,  now  deceased,  by  whom  all 
objection  to  the  "establishment"  except  in  what  related  to  its  political  shackles, 
and  the  secularily,  and  (too  justly  charged)  indolence  and  ill-living  of  its  clergy 
was  repeatedly  and  distinctly  disclaimed.  What  then  is  the  writer  to  think  of 
the  following  statement  by  an  old  and  revered  friend,  which  has  only  come  un- 
der his  eye  since  the  above  was  penned  1  The  Church  has  since  the  above  pe- 
riod shaken  herself  from  her  lethargic  condition,  and  is  beginning  again  to  an- 
swer all  the  purposes  of  her  glorious  institution.  Her  priesthood  are  as  faith- 
ful and  vigilant  as  they  were  once  slothful  and  careless;  and  the  professed 
ground  of  dissent  a  few  years  ago  is  actually  removed  in  the  Church's  return  to 
her  "first  love,"  and  the  performance  of  her  "first  works."  Yet  Mr.  Lucas 
thus  writes  in  the  close  of  his  excellent  "  Observations  on  the  Modern  Clergy, 
and  the  Present  State  of  the  Church,"  p.  104. 

"  The  clergy  had  long  been  coalescing  with  the  respectable  dissenters,  joining 
them  in  the  Bible  and  other  societies ;  and  among  other  bonds  of  amity  let  me 
notice  that  once  in  the  year  Christians  of  all  denominations  had  been  accus- 
tomed, under  excellent  regulations,  to  partake  of  the  Holy  Sacrament  together, 
according  to  the  service  of  the  church  of  England,  in  certain  London  churches, 
granted  for  the  occasion ;  thus  proving  their  Christian  unity,  and  their  respect 
for  the  established  worship.  And,  it  is  well  known  how  directly  as  well  as  in- 
directly the  clergy  favoured  the  abrogation  of  the  Acts  of  which  the  dissenters 


CALVINIAN    HERESY.  55 

Calvinism  is  confined  to  the  lowest  and  most  uneducated 
of  the  latter,  but  in  the  United  States,  and  especially  in 
New  England,  the  case  is  widely  different.  The  doc- 
complained.  I  might  decidedly  instance  the  public  writings  called  Evangelical, 
which,  advocating  the  cause  of  dissenters,  (aye,  in  a  great  degree  carried  on  by 
dissenters,)  supported  a  reform  of  our  Church,  not  to  the  stricter  exclusion  of 
any  honourable  dissenters,  but  to  their  more  ready  and  conscientious  admission 
within  the  pale.  They  opened  their  pages  for  the  advocacy  of  the  dissenters' 
claims  to  the  abolition  of  the  test  and  corporation  acts,  and  to  the  full  and  equal 
use  of  the  franchise  with  themselves.  When  every  thing  the  dissenters  asked 
for  had  been  granted  them,  and  the  clergy  looked  for  their  co-operation  in  re- 
turn, to  enlarge  and  strengthen  the  bond  of  Christianity  to  the  State,  they  were 
met  by  many  with  decided  opposition;  and  the  most  noted  dissenting  preachers, 
emboldened  by  recent  concession,  reckless  of  every  grateful  and  friendly  remem- 
brance, and  jealous  of  one  another,  came  forward,  hailed  by  numbers  among 
themselves,  and,  eagerly  joined  by  every  irreligious  and  unprincipled  man  in  the 
kingdom,  they  all  banded  together,  and  called  the  unnatural  union  'liberality.' 

"  Bunyan,  a  century  and  a  half  since,  in  his  inimitable  '  Pilgrim's  Progress,' 
has  described  Pope  and  Pagan  as  two  old  giants,  with  their  claws  cut,  and  their 
teeth  drawn,  sitting  helpless  and  harmless,  by  the  wayside,  making  mouths  at 
the  Christian  pilgrims,  but  unable  to  do  them  any  injury.  Had  he  seen  Infi- 
delity, a  third  giant  since  his  day,  roughly  handled  and  deservedly  exposed  to 
ridicule  and  scorn,  hiding  himself  and  deserted,  what  would  Bunyan  have  said 
while  his  friends  were  lifting  up  this  wretched  giant,  and  worst  foe  of  his  faith, 
wrapping  a  few  moral  rags  about  him,  and  bringing  him  forward  as  a  fellow 
claimant'?     *     *     * 

"  This  is  a  sad  feature  now  so  prominent  in  dissent,  never  seen  before,  but  in 
anger  against  persecution.  It  is,  in  truth,  a  deadly  feature,  and  was  not  ex- 
pected to  be  found  in  such  men  as  Pye  Smith,  and  Jay  of  Bath,  and  others 
whom  I  forbear  to  name.  It  has  done  its  mischief,  but  not  in  the  way  expect- 
ed ;  it  has  dishonoured  themselves.  Has  it  not  been  among  them  '  The  Disci- 
pline of  the  Secret,'  kept  for  the  occasion  as  much  as  the  Roman  Catholic  one  1 
Jay,  preaching  at  the  tercenary  of  the  Reformation,  says — '  The  Church  of  Rome 
was  the  frog,  the  Church  of  England  is  the  tadpole; '  yet,  in  publishing  the  ser- 
mon, this  most  obnoxious  and  artful  sentiment  is  omitted.  Would  he  have  thus 
spoken  to  his  friends  Hannah  More,  Wilberforce,  and  others  1  Does  he  not  even 
now  try,  by  the  very  suppression,  to  conceal  it  from  the  public  ?  But  though 
it  may  shrink  from  the  sight,  it  has  spoken  too  loud  and  often  to  be  misunder- 
stood. 

"  A  national  voice  of  worth  and  excellence,  in  Church  and  State,  among  the 
very  highest  and  the  lowest,  of  all  ages,  sex,  and  conditions,  has  silenced  for 


56         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

trines  of  the  predestinarian  school,  formerly  the  only  ones 
tolerated  in  those  states,  have  long  since  driven  thousands 
upon  thousands  from  the  meeting-houses  of  the  once 
"standing  order,"  and  given  birth  to  all  the  Socinianism, 
transcendentalism,  universalism,  and  atheism,  which  is 
now  rife  in  that  section  of  the  country.  Many,  however, 
who  are  desirous  of  knowing  the  truth,  and  living  up  to 
the  precepts  of  a  pure  Christianity,  yet  for  whose  appetites 
this  strong  meat  is  unsuited,  are  still  under  the  bondage  of 
those  delusions  with  which  early  pulpit  teaching  has  en- 
thralled their  minds  ;  and  coming  under  the  sound  of  a 
Gospel,  not  of  man,  but  from  God,  it  is  necessary  to  clear 
the  beclouded  judgment,  and  to  strengthen  the  understand- 
ing before  applying  the  word  of  encouragement ;  and  this 
the  truly  "orthodox"  ministers  do,  imitating  the  skilful 
husbandman  who  prepares  the  fallow  ground  for  the  good 
seed. 

The  next  morning,  I  pursued  my  way  to  Dover,  passing 
through  Northwood,  and  Barrington,  and  near  several 
lakes  not,  however,  remarkable  for  picturesque  beauty. 
There  is,  however,  a  sheet  of  water,  twenty-eight  miles 
long,  lying  some  miles  to  the  north  of  our  road,  called 
Lake  Winnipiseogee,  which  is  justly  celebrated,  both  for 
the  beauty  of  its  shores,  and  the  flavour  of  the  fish  with 

a  while  the  cry  of  these  infatuated  separaters.  No  religionist  at  present  ob- 
trudes the  unhallowed  sentiment;  few  profess  it;  many  are  ashamed  of  it ;  and 
the  best  utterly  denounce  it.  I  will  exclude  none,  for  my  hopes  are  sanguine 
that  there  are  few  who  bear  a  good  name  that  can  any  longer  '  halt  between  two 
opinions;'  for  the  evil  is  become  apparent;  the  spurious  claim  hath,  by  these 
destructives  renouncing  all  preference  for  themselves,  betrayed  itself;  and  now 
it  remains  a  mark  for  the  Church — she  takes  it  as  a  test  of  our  common  Chris- 
tianity— it  is  the  shibboleth  of  distinction,  by  which  she  proves  who  is  on  her 
side,  and  who  against  her — and  I  trust  that  the  great  judge  will  confirm  her 
appeal  to  him,  and  will  apply  the  words  to  her  that  his  servant,  the  Judge  of 
Israel  and  Judah,  did  to  the  true  mother,  '  give  her  the  living  child,  and 
in  no  wise  slay  it;  she  is  the  mother  thereof.'  " 


A   BEAR    STORY.  57 

which  it  is  well  stocked.  On  the  north  of  this  inland  sea, 
are  some  dense  forests  from  which  the  bears,  a  native  of 
New  Hampshire,  are  not  yet  wholly  extirpated.  The 
driver  of  my  hired  vehicle  narrated  a  story  of  one  of  these 
sagacious  animals  which  is  too  good  to  be  omitted  in  this 
place,  especially  as  its  literal  truth  was  afterwards  cor- 
roborated by  most  respectable  testimony,  at  Dover.  The 
narrative  was  again  given  to  me  in  nearly  the  same  words 
at  Portsmouth. 

"  Some  years  ago,  a  cub  bear  was  caught  by  a  stout 
lad,  near  the  borders  of  Lake  Winnipiseogee,  carried  into 
the  town,  and  after  proper  drilling  became  the  playfellow 
of  the  boys  of  the  village,  and  often  accompanied  them  to 
the  schoolhouse.  After  passing  a  few  months  in  civilized 
society,  he  made  his  escape  into  the  woods,  and  in  a  few 
years  was  almost  forgotten.  The  schoolhouse,  meantime, 
had  fallen  from  the  schoolmaster's  into  the  schoolmistress's 
hands ;  and  instead  of  large  boys  learning  to  write  and 
cipher,  small  boys  and  girls  were  taught  in  the  same  place 
knitting  and  spelling.  One  winter's  day,  after  a  mild  fall 
of  snow,  the  door  had  been  left  open  by  some  urchin  going 
out,  when,  to  the  unspeakable  horror  of  the  spectacled 
dame  and  her  fourscore  hopeful  scholars,  an  enormous  bear 
walked  in,  in  the  most  familiar  manner  in  the  world,  and 
took  a  seat  by  the  fire.  Huddling  over  the  benches  as  fast 
as  they  could,  the  children  crowded  about  their  schoolmis- 
tress, who  had  fled  to  the  farthest  corner  of  the  room,  and 
there  they  stood  crying  and  pushing  to  escape  the  horror  of 
being  eaten  first.  The  bear  sat  snuffing  and  warming 
himself  by  the  fire,  showing  great  signs  of  satisfaction,  but 
putting  off  his  meal  until  he  had  warmed  himself  thor- 
oughly. The  screams  of  the  children  continued ;  but  the 
schoolhouse  was  far  from  any  other  habitation,  and  the 
bear  did  not  seem  at  all  embarrassed  by  the  outcry.     After 


58  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

sitting  and  turning  himself  about  for  some  time,  Bruin  got 
up  on  his  hind  legs,  and  shoving  the  door  close,  began  to 
take  down,  one  by  one,  the  hats,  bonnets,  and  satchels,  that 
hung  on  several  rows  of  pegs  behind  it.  His  memory  had 
not  deceived  him  ;  for  they  contained,  as  of  old,  the  chil- 
dren's dinners,  and  he  had  arrived  before  the  holidays. 
Having  satisfied  himself  with  their  cheese,  bread,  pies, 
dough-nuts  and  apples,  Bruin  smelt  at  the  mistress's  desk ; 
but  finding  it  locked,  gave  himself  a  shake  of  resignation, 
opened  the  door,  and  disappeared.  The  alarm  was  given, 
and  the  amiable  creature  was  pursued  and  killed  ;  very 
much  to  the  regret  of  the  town's  people,  when  it  was  dis- 
covered, by  some  marks  in  his  body,  that  it  was  their  old 
friend  and  playfellow." 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

DOVER. PORTSMOUTH. NEWBURYPORT. — SALEM. 

Dover  is  famed  for  its  cotton  manufactories  ;  it  is  seated 
on  the  Cocheoco  River,  twelve  miles  from  the  ocean,  and 
at  the  head  of  navigation.  A  fall  of  thirty-three  feet  turns 
30,000  spindles,  and  about  800  looms,  belonging  to  one 
company,  besides  those  of  other  manufacturers.  After  a 
day  or  two  spent  in  Dover,  I  proceeded  to  Portsmouth,  the 
largest  and  oldest  town  in  the  state.  I  was  kindly  received 
by  a  worthy  family,  with  whom  I  remained  several  days. 
Every  thing  about  Portsmouth  looked  more  English-like 
than  any  other  place  I  had  seen  since  leaving  Boston. 
This  is,  of  course,  owing  chiefly  to  its  age,  having  been 
settled  as  early  as  1623.  The  town  stands  on  a  peninsula 
extending  into  the  bay,  or  river  mouth,  where  the  entrance 
is  guarded  by  forts.  There  is  a  pier  about  four  hundred 
feet  long,  and  a  navy  yard  ;  the  place  being  like  its  English 
namesake,  celebrated  for  its  naval  architects. 

On  Sunday,  October  20th,  I  heard  a  sermon  in  one  of 
the  baptist  meeting-houses,  from  Mr.  Mackensie.  The 
building  was  large  enough  to  seat  fifteen  hundred  or  two 
thousand  persons,  though  but  partially  filled  ;  owing,  I  was 
informed,  to  the  erection  of  other  places  of  worship.  Mr. 
Mackensie  is  a  fervid,  warm-hearted  man,  a  clear,  though 
quaint  reasoner,  and  a  ready  speaker — wholly  extempore. 

I  left  Portsmouth  with  many  regrets  that  the  necessity 
for  my  return  to  Boston  made  it  impossible  to  prolong  my 


60  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

stay.  After  a  day's  visit  to  North  Hampton,  where  a  rela- 
tive of  my  Portsmouth  host  resided,  I  pursued  my  course 
by  the  stage  coach  to  Boston.  We  stopped  to  dine  at  New- 
buryport,  where  the  celebrated  preacher  Whitfield  died, 
after  a  long  career  of  missionary  labours  in  1770.  The 
following  inscription  is  placed  on  a  handsome  monument  to 
liis  memory : — 

THIS   CENOTAPH 

IS   ERECTED    WITH   AFFECTIONATE 

VENERATION 

TO    THE    MEMORY    OF   THE 

REV.  GEORGE  WHITFIELD, 

BORN    AT    GLOUCESTER,    ENGLAND, 

DECEMBER    16,    1714, 

EDUCATED    AT    OXFORD   UNIVERSITY, 

ORDAINED    A.D.    1736. 

IN    A   MINISTRY    OF    THIRTY-FOUR    YEARS, 

HE    CROSSED    THE    ATLANTIC    THIRTEEN   TIMES, 

AND    PREACHED    MORE 

THAN    EIGHTEEN    THOUSAND    SERMONS. 

AS   A    SERVANT    OF    THE   CROSS, 

HUMBLE,    DEVOUT,    ARDENT, 

HE    PUT    ON    THE 
WHOLE    ARMOUR    OF   GOD  : 

PREFERRING 

THE   HONOUR    OF    CHRIST 

TO    HIS    OWN    INTEREST,    REPOSE, 

REPUTATION,    AND    LIFE 

We  had  time  to  take  a  general  survey  of  this  beautiful 
place,  in  some  respects  the  pleasantest  for  situation  of  any 
town  through  which  I  passed  in  this  tour.  It  lies  at  the 
mouth  of  the  famed  Merrimack,  which  gives  it  great  ad- 
vantage as  a  trading  port. 


SALEM.  61 

At  Salem,  we  were  detained  about  an  hour,  which  I 
employed  in  taking  a  turn  through  the  principal  streets. 
The  houses  of  several  persons  were  shown  me  who  fell 
victims  to  the  dreadful  proscriptions  by  the  puritan  minis- 
ters, founded  on  supposed  witchcraft. 

Salem  is  another  English-looking  town,  or  rather  city, 
with  we  U  built  but  irregular  streets,  (no  deformity,  by  the 
way,  except  to  quakerly  vision,)  and  15,000  inhabitants. 
The  bishop  of  the  diocess  held  at  this  time  the  rectorship 
of  St.  Peter's  parish,  in  connection  with  his  episcopal 
duties^  though  assisted  in  his  parish  by  two  other  clergy- 
men. The  episcopal  residence,  used  temporally  as  such, 
was  a  commodious  mansion  of  antique  appearance.  Salem 
was  incorporated  as  a  city  in  the  year  following.  To  the 
pious  churchman,  it  was  a  city  some  years  before,  as  much 
as  Manchester,  Liverpool,  and  Birmingham,  are  as  yet  mere 
towns. 

I  have,  as  yet,  seen  no  good  reason  assigned  for  the 
departure  in  the  case  of  several  American  bishops  from 
the  early,  and  till  these  late  American  examples,  the  uni- 
versal custom  of  bishops  holding  a  parochial  charge  of  their 
own  besides  the  chief  pastoral  oversight  of  the  diocess. 
The  precedent  is  most  dangerous !  The  rule  of  the  fifth 
Council  of  Carthage,*  that  "  Every  bishop  shall  have  his 
residence  at  the  principal,  or  cathedral  church,  which  he 
shall  not  leave  to  betake  himself  to  any  other  church  in 
his  diocess,  nor  continue  upon  his  private  concerns  to  the 
neglect  of  his  cure,  and  hindrance  of  his  frequenting  the 

*  See  also  the  XVIII  Canon  of  the  Council  of  Ancyra,  the  XIII  Canon  of 
Neocoesarea,  and  the  IX  of  Antioch.  The  writer  is  compelled  to  dissent  in  his 
view  of  this  matter,  from  that  which  seems  to  be  held  by  the  Bishop  of  Oxford, 
in  his  History  of  the  American  Church,  but  which  is  supported  by  no  authori- 
ties. The  examples  the  bishop  mentions  merely  show  the  need  of  such  a  provi- 
sion as  the  author  recommends  above,  by  which  ministerial  assistance  could  be 
rendered  to  the  bishop  in  his  own  church  and  parish. 


62         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

cathedral  church,"  has  hitherto  held  good,  and  governed  the 
practice  of  all  bishops  in  every  other  part  of  Christendom. 
The  bishop  of  a  diocess  should  be  found  the  greatest  part 
of  the  year  at  his  own  parish.  "  The  city*  church,"  writes 
Bingham,  "  was  to  be  the  chief  place  of  the  bishop's  resi- 
dence." It  is  quite  doubtful  whether  frequent  visitations 
counterbalance  the  evil  of  episcopal  non-residence.  The 
benefits  of  episcopal  government  are  not  to  be  estimated  by 
the  number  of  episcopal  visitations  to  a  parish,  or  the 
constant  presence  of  the  crosier  and  lawn,  but  by  the  sta- 
bility and  harmony  which  the  chief  pastor  gives  to  the 
ecclesiastical  operations  of  the  Church  in  his  office  as 
president  in  the  annual  council  of  the  clergy  and  laity,  and 
as  head  of  the  diocess  ;  acting  as  the  arbiter  in  all  disputes 
between  pastors  and  their  flocks,  or  between  contending 
clergy.  A  bishop  is  the  representative  of  the  latter,  and 
his  church  "  the  eye  of  the  diocess."  His  influence  would 
be  more  than  doubly  felt  in  every  section  thereof,  were  his 
regular  periodical  visits  triennial  only  instead  of  annual  or 
semi-annual. 

If  clergymen  could  only  waive  their  petty  jealousies,  and 
attend  episcopal  elections  on  every  occasion  thoroughly 
imbued  with  the  spirit  of  St.  John's  General  Epistle,  and 
divested  of  "  that  most  odious  of  all  hateful  corruptions, 
ministerial   envy'^  much    time,   money,   and  reputation 

*  The  original  meaning  and  derivation  of  the  term  is  understood  by  few  in  the 
United  States;  being  applied  only  to  large  corporate  towns,  with  or  without  a 
resident  bishop.  When  the  population  reaches  twelve  thousand,  a  "  city"  char- 
ter is  granted  on  the  application  of  the  majority  of  the  taxable  inhabitants. 
Several  cities  under  old  charters  have  a  much  smaller  population,  viz :  Burling- 
ton in  New  Jersey,  Newport  in  Rhode  Island,  Munroe  in  M.chigan,  etc. 
Some  populous  towns  on  the  other  hand  with  more  than  the  requisite  number 
of  inhabitants  have  never  yet  applied  for  city  privileges,  e.  g.  New  Bedford  in 
Massachusetts,  Hagerstown  in  Maryland,  etc 

t  Rev.  J.  Sargent 


SALEM.  63 

might  be  saved  the  Church  by  the  election  of  a  resident 
clergyman  in  every  vacant  diocess,*  respectable  for  years 
and  standing,  and  rector  of  a  city  parish  abundantly  able 
to  support  him.  Should  this  be  objected  to  on  the  ground 
of  his  supposed  bias  from  parochial  influence  and  ties, 
(a  more  imaginary  evil  than  any  thing  else,)  the  means 
which  a  diocess  possesses  of  creating  an  episcopal  fund 
could  easily  be  stretched  to  make  it  the  permanent  endow- 
ment of  a  cathedral  church.  This  would  be  desirable,  if 
only  to  dispossess  the  public  mind  of  the  vulgar  impression 
that  a  cathedral  is  necessarily  a  building  of  large  propor- 
tions and  peculiar  construction ;  or,  what  is  a  more  common 
error  in  protestant  communities,  that  all  large  churches 
built  cruciform  are  cathedrals  !  Out  of  a  multitude  of  au- 
thorities to  the  contrary,  the  Encyclopaedia  of  the  "  Society 
for  the  Diffusion  of  Useful  Knowledge,"  will  scarcely  be 
questioned,  which  gives  the  following  definition  of  the  word 
— "  Certain  churches  are  called  cathedrals,  or  cathedral 
churches.  They  are  so  called  in  consequence  of  having  a 
seat  of  dignity  (cathedra,  a  Greek  term  for  such  a  seat) 
appropriated  to  a  bishop  or  archbishop.  Thus,  there  is  the 
cathedral  church  of  Canterbury,  the  cathedral  church  of 
Norwich,  the  cathedral  church  of  Wells.  They  have  usu- 
ally also  a  dean,  and  body  of  canons  or  prebendaries,  but 
this  is  not  essential  to  constitute  a  cathedral  church,  nor  is 
every  church  that  has  a  chapter  of  canons  a  cathedral 
church." 

For  a  bishop  "  to  be  the  rector  of  a  parish,"  said  the  late 
Bishop  Griswold,  "  gives  him  more  the  appearance  of  being 
the  head  of  the  family  ;  it  makes  his  house  a  better  school 
for  candidates,  and  for   the  younger  clergy  ;    he  can  the 

*  Where  such  has  been  the  practice,  it  has  been  followed  by  the  happiest  re- 
sults. Witness  the  examples  of  the  Eastern  Diocess  (in  the  election  of  its  late 
bishop,  Griswold  !)    Connecticut,  South  Carolina,  Georgia,  Louisiana,  etc. 


64         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

better  instruct  them  in  what  of  all  human  teaching  is 
the  most  useful — the  pastoral  care ;  and  it  enlarges  his 
means  of  doing  good.  Our  Church,  indeed,  supposes  that 
the  bishop  will  have  such  a  pastoral  care,  having  in  her 
xxx  canon  made  provision  for  the  supplying  of  his  parish 
while  absent  on  his  episcopal  visitations."* 
The  fault,  then,  is  not  the  Church's  ! 

*  Order  and  duty  of  Bishops,  p.  17. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

SALEM    WITCHCRAFT     DELUSION. OBJECT    AND     CONCEP- 
TION   OF    THE    PLOT! 

On  our  way  homeward  the  conversation  of  the  passen- 
gers turned  on  the  witchcraft  delusion,  of  which  Salem 
was  the  scene  in  1692.  That  event  was  a  dark  page  in 
the  history  of  the  New  England  colonists,  and  the  part  that 
the  "standing  order"  of  ministers  took  in  the  never  to  be 
forgotten  tragedy  is  important  to  be  preserved  in  the  recol- 
lection of  the  members  of  a  British  community,  who  are 
perpetually  reminded  by  dissenting  politicians  of  the  super- 
stitions and  severities  which  the  English  clergy  are  charged 
with  encouraging,  in  the  reigns  of  James  and  the  Charles'. 
A  distant  land  was  furnishing  throughout  the  whole  period 
of  alleged  episcopal  persecution,  including  the  Cromwellian 
usurpation,  scenes  of  priestly  cruelty  and  crime  only  equall- 
ed by  the  atrocities  of  papal  proscription. 

To  pass  over  the  dark  night  of  congregational  tyranny 
which  immediately  succeeded  the  planting  of  the  Plymouth 
colony,  when  the  long  desired  object  of  the  puritan  faction 
was  gained,  and  a  Church  had  been  established  "  after 
their  own  model."* — To  pass  over  the  executions,!  the  nose 

*  They  longed  for  something  more  than  toleration ;  they  desired  to  set  up 
churches  after  their  own  model  of  perfection,  and  to  watch  their  growth  and 
progress."     Wilberforce's  History  of  the  American  Church,  p.  58. 

t  "  Many  quakers  in  New  England  were  put  to  death  for  the  profession  of 
their  faith,  until  an  order  from  King  Charles  II.  brought  this  violence  to  a  close." 
lb. — see  also  Neal's  Puritans,  vol.  1,  p.  334. 

5 


66         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

slittings,  the  ear  shearings,  the  tongue  borings,*  the  un- 
merciful whippings,!  the  fines,  imprisonments,!  starvings,§ 
and  perpetual  banishments ||  for  conscience  sake,  which  the 
early  history  of  the  colony  affords,  the  next  page  in  its 
blood-written  annals  reveals  a  scheme,  deep  and  sanguinary, 
which  history,  with  her  impartial,  because  unbiassed,  pen 
will  put  down  as  devised  and  executed  solely  to  uphold 
priestly  domination — as  an  assault  upon  the  rights  of  the 
people, — and  a  combined  and  fearfully  executed  plot  to 
perpetuate  the  thraldom  of  a  superstitious  population  to 
its  spiritual  heads.  Let  us  glance  at  the  particulars  of 
this  plot,  and  again  put  on  record  its  principal  actors  and 
abettors. 

The  event  which  was  seized  upon  as  giving  warrant  to 
the  deeds  of  cruelty  which  we  have  to  relate  affords  a  fear- 
ful warning  to  all  persons  down  to  the  youngest,  to  abstain 
from  the  use  of  deception  in  any  form  for  the  purpose  of 
making  others  the  victims  either  of  their  amusement,  or 
their  schemes  of  interest. 

Cotton  Mather,  a  name  that  will  descend  to  posterity, 

*  Some  of  the  "  dissenter?"  from  the  Congregational  "  platform"  were  sen- 
tenced, "  after  the  first  conviction  to  lose  one  ear,  after  the  second  another,  and 
after  the  third  to  have  the  tongue  bored  through  with  a  red  hot  iron." — Wilber- 
force,  p.  75. 

t  "  Convicted  anabaptists  were  fined  twenty  pounds,  and  whipped  unmerci- 
fully."—lb.  p.  74. 

J  "Fines,  imprisonments  and  even  death  itself  were  amongst  their  remedies." 
—lb.  p.  74. 

§  "No  food  and  lodgings  shall  be  allowed  a  quaker,  Adamite  or  other  heretic." 
—Blue  Code,  No.  13. 

§  "Two  brothers,  Church  of  England  men,  a  lawyer  and  a  merchant,  who 
had  joined  unawares  the  settlement  of  Salem,  finding  how  matters  stood,  ven- 
tured to  uphold  in  their  own  house,  for  such  as  would  resort  unto  them,  the 
Common  Prayer  worship.  But  such  an  enormity  they  were  not  long  suffered 
to  continue ;  for  a  disturbance  arising  amongst  the  people  upon  this  occasion 
'  the  brothers  were  called  before  the  magistrates,  and  so  handled  as  to  be  induced 
to  leave  the  colony  forthwith.'  "    Wilberforce  p.  73. 


COTTON    MATHER.  67 

loaded  with  the  just  execrations  of  every  friend  of  religious 
freedom,  was  foremost  amongst  his  clerical  colleagues  in  his 
opposition  to  the  various  forms  of  "heresy"  which  had 
crept  into  the  colony  of  New  England  ;  and  which,  spite  of 
every  effort  to  suppress  them,  continued  to  disturb  the  reign 
of  congregational  ascendancy.  The  colonial  clergy  were 
losing  their  influence.     How  was  it  to  be  retained  ? 

A  veracious  historian,  the  successor  of  one  of  the  prin- 
cipal actors  in  the  drama  of  the  witchcraft  persecution,  has 
recorded  the  well-proved,  and  now  generally  acknowledged 
fact,  that  "  Dr.  Mather  contemplated  the  witchcraft  delu- 
sion as  the  instrument  in  promoting  a  revival  of  religion,  and 
boasted  of  the  success  with  which  it  was  attended  as  such."* 

Mather  was  many  years  minister  of  the  "  North  Church," 
now  standing  in  Boston,!  and  a  man  of  great  influence  in 
the  colony.  Dr.  Coleman,  his  eulogist,  describes  him  as 
"  the  most  learned  man  he  ever  knew,  who  combined  an 
almost  incredible  amount  of  vanity  and  credulity,  with  a 
high  degree  of  cunning  and  policy  ;  an  inordinate  love  of 
temporal  power  and  distinction,  with  every  outward  mani- 
festation of  piety  and  christian  humility  ;  and  a  proneness 
to  fanaticism  and  superstition,  with  amazing  acquisitions 
of  knowledge,  and  a  great  and  remarkable  genius." 

In  plainer  English,  the  Brownist  archbishopt  was  an  ac- 

*  The  Rev.  Charles  W.  Upham,  Pastor  of  the  First  Congregational  Church 
in  Salem,  in  a  volume  of  "  Lectures  on  Witchcraft"  delivered  in  1831,  from 
which  (an  undoubted  source)  my  principal  materials  are  taken. 

t  Not  Christchurch  described  in  Chap.  VI.,  but  an  independant  meeting 
house,  built  church-like,  which  has  long  enjoyed  the  above  appellation ;  being 
the  corporate  name  of  the  society. 

I  Robert  Brown  was  the  founder  of  the  "  independant"  [congregational]  dis- 
senters, who  long  bore  the  name  of  "  Brownists"  from  him.  He  is  described 
by  Neale  the  dissenting  historian,  [1-375,  376]  as  being  a  "  fiery  hot  headed 
young  man ;  idle  and  dissolute,"  in  middle  life ;  and  in  old  age,  "  poor,  proud, 
and  very  passionate."  He  died  in  1630.— Wilberforce's  History  of  the  Ameri- 
can church,  p.  71. 


68         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

complished  Jesuit ;  and  had  lie  been  member  of  a  better 
devised  religious  system  than  the  impracticable  "  platform" 
of  Congregationalism,  he  would  doubtless,  for  a  time  have 
effected  his  pious  object,  and  rivetted  faster  the  fetters  of 
spiritual  slavery  on  the  New  England  population.  But 
how  many  whose  proper  field  of  action  would  be  in  the 
ranks  of  Ignatius  Loyola,  have  figured  prominently  under 
the  more  convenient,  because  unmeaning  and  undefined 
standard  of  "  protestant."  "  Mather  aspired"  writes  the 
same  authority  before  quoted,*  "  to  be  considered  the  great 
champion  of  the  Church,  and  the  most  successful  combatant 
against  the  prince  of  the  air.  He  seems  to  have  longed  for 
an  opportunity  to  signalize  himself  in  this  particular  kind 
of  warfare, — seized  upon  every  occurrence  that  would  ad- 
mit of  such  a  colouring  to  represent  it  as  the  result  of  dia- 
bolical agency, — circulated  in  his  numerous  publications  as 
many  tales  of  witchcraft  as  he  could  collect  throughout 
New  and  Old  England, — and  repeatedly  endeavoured  to 
get  up  a  delusion  of  this  kind  in  Boston.  He  succeeded  to 
some  great  extent.  An  instance  of  witchcraft  was  brought 
about  in  that  place  by  his  management  in  1688.  There  is 
some  ground  for  suspicion  that  he  was  instrumental  in 
causing  the  delusion  in  Salem ;  at  any  rate  he  took  a  lead- 
ing part  in  conducting  it.  And  while  there  is  evidence  that 
he  endeavoured,  after  the  delusion  subsided,  to  escape  the 
disgrace  of  having  approved  of  the  proceedings,  and  pre- 
tended to  have  been  in  some  measure  opposed  to  them,  it 
can  be  too  clearly  shown  that  he  was  secretly  and  cunningly 
endeavouring  to  renew  them  during  the  next  year  in  his 
own  parish  in  Boston.  I  know  nothing  more  artful  and 
Jesuitical  than  his  attempts  to  avoid  the  reproach  of  having 
been  active  in  carrying  on  the  delusion  in  Salem,  and  else- 
where, and  at  the  same  time  to  keep  up  such  a  degree  of 
*  Rev.  Mr.  Upham. 


CASE    OF    WITCHCRAFT.  69 

credulity  and  superstition  in  the  minds  of  the  people  as  to 
render  it  easy  to  plunge  them  into  it  again  at  the  first  fa- 
vourable moment."* 

The  case  referred  to  in  this  extract  was  that  of  a  young 
girl,  named  Godwin,  who  was  said  to  be  "bewitched." 
Her  talents  appear  to  have  been  very  remarkable ;  "  She 
had"  writes  Mr.  Upham,  "a  genius  scarcely  inferior  to 
master  Burke  himself,  there  was  no  part  nor  passion  she 
could  not  enact."  This  excellent  instrument  for  the  ac- 
complishment of  his  schemes  wras  taken  by  Dr.  Mather 
into  his  family,  ostensibly  to  see  "whether  he  could  not  ex- 
orcise her."t  Here  our  ingenious  actress  played  off  her 
tricks  upon  the  puritan  doctor.  By  his  own  published  ac- 
count— "  He  once  wished  to  say  something  in  her  presence 
to  a  third  person,  which  he  did  not  intend  she  should  un- 
derstand. He  accordingly  spoke  in  Latin;  but  she  had 
penetration  enough  to  conjecture  what  he  had  said ;  he 
was  amazed !  He  then  tried  Greek  ;  she  was  equally  suc- 
cessful. He  next  spoke  in  Hebrew ;  she  instantly  detected 
the  meaning.  At  last  he  resorted  to  the  Indian  language, 
and  that  she  pretended  not  to  know.  The  evil  being  with 
whom  she  was  in  compact  was  acquainted  familiarly  with 
Latin,  Greek,  and  Hebrew,  but  not  with  the  Indian  tongue. 
He  handed  her  a  book  written  by  a  quaker ;  she  would 
read  it  off  with  great  ease,  rapidity,  and  pleasure.  A  book 
written  against  the  quakers  she  could  not  read  at  all.  She 
could  read  popish  books  but  could  not  decipher  a  syllable 
of  the  Assembly's  Catechism  !  She  was  very  fond  of  the 
Book  of  Common  Prayer  and  called  it  her  Bible,"  &c.  &c. 

So  these  circumstances,  admitting  their  truth,  served  to 
convince  our  puritan  doctor  of  divinity  that  his  little  patient 

•  Upham,  p.  106. 

1  Yet  the  pretended  power  of  exorcising  evil  spirits  was  one  of  the  principal 
objections  of  the  nonconformists  against  the  Romish  priesthood  ! 


70  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

was  in  league  with  the  devil.  "  She  was  very  fond  of  the 
Book  of  Common  Prayer." — 'Twere  well  for  Dr.  Mather 
had  he  been  equally  fond  of  a  book  which  a  more  learned 
dissenter*  than  even  Dr.  Mather,  and  one  possessing,  some 
will  think,  as  due  an  appreciation  of  the  spiritual  in  pub- 
lic worship,  has  since  pronounced  "the  first  of  uninspired 
compositions."  Had  Mather  been  imbued  with  the  spirit 
of  that  blessed  book,  instead  of  the  cramped  and  narrow 
system  embodied  in  the  Westminster  Confession  and  the 
Assembly's  Catechism,  much  innocent  blood  would  have 
been  spared,  and  the  cause  of  religion  would  have  escaped 
the  dark  reproach  which  it  shortly  after  incurred  through 
his  agency. — But  to  proceed  with  the  doctor's  account, 
which  is  necessarily  condensed. 

To  show  that  the  devil  stood  in  great  fear  of  his  august 
presence,  the  puritan  saint  records  that  "  There  stood  open 
the  study  of  one  belonging,  to  the  family,  into  which  enter- 

*  The  admirable  Robert  Hall.  The  opinion  of  Dr.  Clark  may  also  be  cited, 
who  records  of  the  Anglican  Prayer  Book  that  "Asa  form  of  devotion  it  has 
no  equal  in  any  part  of  the  universal  Church  of  God." 

"  Its  great  excellences  writes  Dr.  Comben  (a  presbyterian)  have  obtained  for 
it  a  universal  reputation  in  all  the  world.  It  is  most  deservedly  admired  by 
the  Eastern  Churches,  and  in  great  esteem  by  the  most  eminent  protestants  in 
Europe." 

"  It  comes"  says  Grotius,  "  so  near  the  primitive  pattern,  that  none  of  the 
Reformed  Churches  can  compare  with  it." 

And  the  "  Religious  Intelligencer,"  the  newspaper  organ  of  the  Dutch  (pres- 
byterian) Church  of  the  United  States,  gives  this  candid  testimony  to  the  instru- 
mentality of  the  Anglican  liturgy  in  promoting  the  doctrinal  purity  of  the  Eng- 
lish and  American  Churches : — 

"  Her  evangelical  liturgy  and  a  scrupulous  adherence  to  it  has  preserved  the 
integrity  of  the  Episcopal  Church,  beyond  that  of  any  denomination  of  Chris- 
tians since  the  Reformation.     It  might  be  so  in  our  Church — and  why  notl" 

[The  American  branches  of  the  Dutch  Reformed,  and  Lutheran  Churches  have 
abandoned  the  public  use  of  their  liturgies  (though  retained  in  their  ordinals) 
in  compliance  with  the  practise  of  surrounding  sects.  The  extract  is  from  an 
article  by  the  editor  deploring  the  same.] 


PURITAN    SAINTSHIP.  71 

ing,  she  stood  immediately  on  her  feet,  and  cried  out, 
'  They  are  gone  !  They  are  gone  !  They  say  that  they 
can  not, — God  wont  let  'em  come  here !'  adding  a  reason 
for  it  which  the  owner  of  the  study  thought  more  kind  than 
true.  She  woidd  be  faint  at  first  (after  entering  the  holy 
and  charmed  apartment)  and  say,  'She  felt  something  go 
out  of  her,'  the  noises  whereof  we  sometimes  heard  like 
those  of  a  mouse. 

"  When  he  called  the  family  to  prayers,  she  would  whis- 
tle and  sing,  and  yell  to  drown  his  voice,  would  strike  at 
him  with  her  fist  and  try  to  kick  him.  But  her  hand  or 
foot  would  always  recoil  when  within  an  inch  or  two  of  his 
body ;  [thus  giving  the  idea  that  there  was  a  sort  of  invisi- 
ble coat  of  mail,  of  heavenly  temper  and  proof  against  the 
assaults  of  the  devil  around  his  sacred  person.]  After  a 
while  he  concluded  to  prepare  an  account  of  these  extraor- 
dinary circumstances  wherewithal  to  entertain  his  congre- 
gation in  a  sermon.  She  seemed  to  be  quite  displeased  at 
the  thought  of  his  making  public  the  doings  of  her  master, 
the  evil  one,  attempted  to  prevent  his  writing  the  intended 
sermon,  and  disturbed  and  interrupted  him  in  all  manner 
of  ways.  For  instance,  she  once  knocked  at  his  study  door 
f  and  said  that  '  there  was  somebody  clown  stairs  that  would 
be  glad  to  see  him ;' — he  dropped  his  pen,  and  went  down  ; 
upon  entering  the  room  he  found  nobody  there  but  the 
family.  The  next  time  he  met  her  he  undertook  to  chide 
her  for  having  told  him  a  falsehood.  She  denied  that  she 
had  told  a  falsehood.  '  Didn't  you  say,'  said  he, '  that  there 
was  somebody  down  stairs  that  would  be  glad  to  see  me  V 
'Well,'  she  replied,  with  inimitable  pertness,  'is  not  Mrs. 
Mather  always  glad  to  see  you  V 

"  She  even  went  much  farther  than  this  in  persecuting 
him  while  he  was  writing  his  sermon  ;    she  threw  large 


72  ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

books  at  his  head.  But  he  struggled  manfully  against 
these  '  buffetings  of  Satan '  and  finished  the  sermon."* 

Wonderful  man  !  to  finish  a  sermon  against  such  fearful 
odds,  and  despite  such  Satanic  interruption  !  Verily  this 
modern  Dunstan  deserves  canonization  at  the  hands  of  his 
sect.  By  what  singular  oblivion  of  memory  is  it  that  his 
conflicts  and  perseverance  in  resisting  the  prince  of  dark- 
ness are  unnoticed  on  the  anniversary  of  his  birth  ?  Have 
his  followers  forgotten  that  he  once  lived  ? — or  are  they  de- 
sirous that  the  world  should  forget  a  saint  whose  feats  cer- 
tainly surpass  those  of  the  monk  of  Glastonbury  !  Some- 
thing more  potent  than  red  hot  tongs  must  have  been  used 
by  the  puritan  doctor  to  frighten  off  the  assaults  of  the 
evil  one  ;  for  mark  another  part  of  his  account.—"  Theyt 
would  bark  like  dogs,  and  then  again  purr  like  cats.  Yea, 
they  would  fly  like  geese,  and  be  carried  with  an  incredible 
swiftness,  having  but  just  their  toes  now  and  then  upon  the 
ground,  sometimes  not  once  in  twenty  feet,  and  their  arms 
waved  like  the  wings  of  a  bird." 

This  clear  case  of  witchcraft  "  originated  the  delusion  in 
Salem.  It  occurred  only  four  years  before  Dr.  Mather's 
account  filled  the  whole  country,  and  it  is  probable  that  the 
children  in  Mr.  Parris's  family  undertook  to  re-enact  it."+ 

The  doctor  preached  his  sermon  and  then  published  it. 
He  did  more  ;  he  sent  the  narrative  to  Richard  Baxter,  the 
celebrated  non-conformist  preacher,  who  republished  it  in 
London,  with  a  preface  in  which  he  affirms  that  "  he  who 

*  Upham  p.  187. 

t  Miss  Godwin  and  her  sister  who  seems  to  have  possessed  the  same  histri- 
onic parts. 

t  In  passing  from  the  conception  of  the  plot  to  its  terrible  birth,  I  have  pre- 
ferred, in  this  short  paragraph,  quoting  the  guarded  but  unmistakable  testimony 
of  Mr.  Upham,  who  in  his  notice  of  these  events,  aims  to  gloze  over  the  part 
which  the  congregational  ministers  acted.  His  honesty,  however,  compels  him 
to  admit  the  facts  of  the  case. 


DR.    MATHER.  73 

would  not  be  convinced  by  all  the  evidence  Dr.  Mather 
presented  that  the  child  was  bewitched,  must  be  a  very 
Sadducee."* 

*  This  gloomy  fanatic  appears  to  have  taken  a  lively  interest  in  the  work  of 
suppressing  witchcraft  in  New  England.  "He  kept  up,"  says  Mr.  Upham,  "a 
correspondence  with  Cotton  Mather  and  with  his  father  Increase  Mather,  through 
the  medium  of  which  he  stimulated  and  encouraged  them  in  their  proceedings 
against  supposed  witches  in  Boston  and  elsewhere."  Even  Dr.  Watts,  who 
was  doubtless  deceived  by  Mather's  fabrications,  writes  in  a  letter  to  that 
honest  philanthropist  dated  Februrary  19th,  17'20. — "  I  am  persuaded  that  there 
was  much  immediate  agency  of  the  devil  in  these  affairs,  and  perhaps  there 
were  some  real  witches  too."  It  is  possible  that  the  docter  conceals  under  this 
seeming  admission  a  keen  rebuke  to  his  cotemporary ;  for  he  expresses  in  the 
same  letter  his  doubts  respecting  the  sufficiency  of  the  spectral  evidence  for  con- 
demnation. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

SALEM    WITCHCRAFT    DELUSION. DEVELOPMENT    AND 

EXECUTION    OF    THE    PLOT. 

The  public  mind  having  now  become  prepared  for  the 
grand  act*  a  pretext  for  the  work  of  blood  was  soon  af- 
forded in  the  case  of  two  female  children  at  Salem,  the 
daughter  and  niece  of  Mr.  Parris,  a  congregational  minister 
of  the  neighborhood.  This  was  in  February  1692.  Eliza- 
beth Parris  was  nine  years  old,  and  her  cousin  Abigail 
Williams,  was  twelve.  "  They  would  creep  into  holes  and 
under  benches  and  chairs,  put  themselves  into  odd  postures, 
make  antic  gestures,  and  utter  loud  outcries,  and  ridicu- 
lous, incoherent,  and  unintelligible  expressions.  The  atten- 
tion of  the  family  was  arrested.  No  account  or  explana- 
tion of  the  conduct  of  the  children  could  be  given,  and  in 
an  evil  hour  physicians  were  called  in  and  consulted.  One 
of  the  physicians  gave  it  as  his  opinion  that  the  children 
were  bewitched."! 

Before  continuing  Mr.  Upham's  narrative,  the  reader  is 
particularly  requested  to  note  the  circumstances  which  pre- 
ceded this  symptom  of  the  presence  of  witchcraft ;  which 
circumstances  shall  be  given  in  Mr.  Upham's  own  lan- 
guage. 

*  "  Baxter  wrote  his  work  entitled  "  The  certainty  of  the  world  of  spirits," 
for  the  special  purpose  of  confirming  and  diffusing  the  belief.  The  writings  of 
Dr.  More,  of  Baxter,  and  Glaudil  had  been  circulating  for  a  long  time  in  every 
direction  in  New  England,  before  the  trials  began  in  Salem." — Upham,  p.  216. 

t  Upham,  p.  17. 


SALEM    WITCHCRAFT    DELUSION.  75 

"The  population  of  what  is  now  Salem  was  at  that 
time,  and  continued  for  nearly  thirty  years  afterwards,  to 
be  so  small  that  there  was  but  one  religious  society  in  the 
place.  All  the  people  were  accommodated  in  the  meeting 
house  of  the  First  Church.  A  separate  religious  society 
had  previously  been  formed  in  what  was  then  called  Salem 
village,  now  Danvers.  This  congregation  (the  same  at 
present  under  the  pastoral  care  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Braman, 
lately  under  that  of  the  estimable  Dr.  Wadsworth)  had  for 
a  long  period  been  the  scene  of  one  of  those  violent  and 
heated  dissensions  too  common  in  our  [voluntary]  religious 
societies  at  all  times.  The  unhappy  strife  was  gradually 
propagated,  until  it  had  spread  alienation  and  bitterness 
through  the  whole  town,  and  finally  became  of  such  mo- 
ment that  it  was  carried  up  to  the  General  Court,  and  was 
a  topic  of  discussion  and  altercation  there.  The  parties 
were  the  Rev.  Samuel  Parris  on  one  side,  and  a  large  por- 
tion of  his  congregation  on  the  other." 

Keeping  these  events  in  mind,  let  us  then  follow  the  nar- 
rative in  the  words  of  the  same  writer  : — 

'•  One  or  two  other  young  girls  in  the  neighborhood  soon 
began  to  exhibit  similar  indications  of  being  bewitched. 
The  families  to  which  the  afflicted  children  belonged  im- 
mediately applied  themselves  to  fasting  and  prayer ;  invo- 
king the  interposition  of  the  Divine  Being  to  deliver  them 
from  the  snares  and  dominion  of  Satan.  Mr.  Parris  in- 
vited the  neighboring  ministers  to  assemble  at  his  house, 
and  unite  with  him  in  devoting  a  day  to  solemn  religious 
services,  and  to  devout  supplications  to  the  throne  of  mercy 
for  rescue  from  the  power  of  the  great  enemy  of  souls. 
During  the  exercises  of  this  occasion  one  of  the  children 
had  frequent  and  violent  convulsive  fits.  These  events 
soon  became  generally  known  in  the  village,  and  through 
the  whole  surrounding  country.     The  public  mind  was  pre- 


76         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

pared  to  sanction  the  opinion  of  the  physician,  and  it  was 
universally  believed  that  the  evil  one  had  commenced  his 
operations  with  a  bolder  front,  and  on  a  broader  scale  than 
in  any  previous  period. 

"  Great  numbers  crowded  to  the  spot  to  gratify  their 
credulous  curiosity  by  witnessing  the  effect  of  his  influence 
upon  the  afflicted  children  ;  and  all  were  anxious  to  dis- 
cover by  whose  co-operation  he  thus  exercised  his  malig- 
nant power.  The  pretended  sufferers  were  incessantly  im- 
portuned to  declare  who  afflicted  them  1  Who  were  the 
witches  through  whom  the  evil  one  acted  upon  them? — 
At  length  when  they  had  wrought  the  people  up  to  a  suf- 
ficient degree  of  excitement,  they  began  to  select  and  bring 
forward  their  victims.  They  first  accused,  or  as  the  phrase 
was  '  cried  out  upon'  an  Indian  woman  attached  to  Mr. 
Parris's  family.  By  operating  upon  the  old  creature's  fears 
and  imagination,  and,  as  there  is  some  reason  to  apprehend, 
by  using  severe  treatment  towards  her,  she  was  made  to 
confess  that  the  charge  was  trite,  and  that  she  was  in 
league  with  the  devil. 

"  All  can  easily  imagine  the  effect  of  this  confession. 
It  established  beyond  question  or  suspicion,  the  credibility 
of  the  accusers,  and  produced  such  a  thorough  conviction 
of  their  veracity  in  the  public  mind,  that  if  any  one  still 
continued  to  have  misgivings  or  doubts  it  seemed  to  be  all 
in  vain,  even  if  he  had  courage  enough  to  dare  to  do  it,  to 
give  them  utterance.  This  state  of  things  emboldened  the 
young  girls,  and  they  proceeded  to  accuse  two  more  de- 
crepid  and  miserable  old  women,  who  were  immediately 
arrested,  thrown  into  prison,  and  put  in  irons.  In  the 
meantime  new  accessions  were  made  to  the  number  of  the 
afflicted  accusers,  owing  either  to  the  inflamed  state  of  the 
imaginations  of  the  people,  which  led  them  to  attribute 
their  various  diseases  and  ailments  to  the  agency  of  witches, 


SALEM    WITCHCRAFT    DELUSION.  77 

to  a  mere  love  of  notoriety  and  a  passion  for  general  sym- 
pathy, to  a  desire  to  be  secure  against  the  charge  of  be- 
witching  others,  or  to  a  malicious  disposition  to  wreak  ven- 
geance upon  enemies. 

"  The  next  person  accused  was  carried  into  the  meeting 
house  in  the  village,  and  confronted  with  the  accusers. 
As  soon  as  the  poor  old  woman  was  brought  in,  they  utter- 
ed loud  screams,  and  fell  down  upon  the  floor.  If  in  her 
terror  and  despair  she  happened  to  clasp  her  hands,  they 
would  shriek  out  that  she  was  pinching  them.  When  she 
pressed  in  agony  her  withered  lip,  they  exclaimed  that  she 
was  biting  them,  and  would  show  the  marks  of  her  teeth 
upon  their  flesh.  If  the  dreadful  excitement  of  the  scene, 
added  to  the  feebleness  of  age,  exhausted  and  overcame 
her,  and  she  happened  to  lean  for  support  against  the  side 
of  the  pew  or  the  aisle,  they  would  cry  out  that  their  bodies 
wTere  crushed ;  and  if  she  changed  her  position,  or  took  a 
single  step,  they  would  declare  that  their  feet  were  in  pain. 
In  this  manner  they  artfully  produced  a  strong  conviction 
in  the  minds  of  the  deluded  magistrates,  and  excited  by- 
standers. On  these  occasions  the  proceedings  were  always 
introduced  by  prayer  and  addresses  from  the  most  influen- 
tial ministers  in  the  vicinity,  who  were  decided  in  counte- 
nancing, and  active  in  promoting  them.  The  afflicted,  as 
they  were  called,  did  not  rest  with  merely  accusing  their 
victims  of  having  bewitched  them,  but  testified  on  the  stand 
that  they  had  been  present  with  them  at  their  diabolical 
meetings,  had  witnessed  them  partaking  in  the  visible 
company  of  Satan,  of  his  blasphemous  sacraments,  and 
had  seen  them  sign  his  book  with  their  own  blood. 

"  The  examination  of  the  accused  generally  took  place, 
as  has  always  been  understood,  in  the  house  still  stand- 
ing at  the  western  corner  of  North  and  Essex  streets, 
then  the  residence  of  Jonathan  Corwin,  Esq.,  at  that  time 


78         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

an  acting   magistrate.     His   colleague   in  the   magistracy 
was  John  Hathorne,  Esq. 

"  While  the  delusion  was  spreading  over  the  colony, 
its  operations  were  going  on  with  tremendous  efficacy  in 
Salem,  and  the  neighboring  towns  ;  additions  were  con- 
tinually making  to  the  number  of  the  accusers  by  volun- 
tary accessions,  and  by  those,  who,  having  been  themselves 
accused,  to  save  their  lives  confessed  and  became  witnesses 
against  others.  The  prisons  in  Salem,  Cambridge  and 
Boston,  were  crowded  with  supposed  witches.  All  the 
securities  of  society  were  dissolved.  Every  man's  life  was 
at  the  mercy  of  every  other  man.  Fear  sat  on  every 
countenance,  terror  and  distress  were  in  all  hearts  ;  silence 
pervaded  the  streets ;  many  of  the  people  left  the  country  ; 
all  business  was  at  a  stand  ;  and  the  feeling,  dismal  and 
horrible  indeed,  became  general  that  the  -providence  of 
God  ivas  removed  from  them,  and  that  they  were  given 
over  to  the  dominion  of  Satan. 

"  To  meet  the  extraordinary  crisis,  a  special  commission 
was  issued  to  seven  of  the  principal  citizens  and  jurists 
of  the  colony,  constituting  them  a  court  to  try  accused 
persons  at  Salem.  These  were  the  Lieutenant  Governor 
Mr.  Stoughton,  Major  Suttonstall,  Major  Richards,  Major 
Gidney,  Mr.  Wait  Winthrop,  Capt.  Sewall,  and  Mr.  Sar- 
geant.  They  assembled  by  particular  appointment  at  the 
court  house  in  Salem  (supposed  to  have  stood  at  the  eastern 
corner  of  Essex  and  Washington  streets)  on  the  second 
of  June,  1692.  The  first  victim,  an  old  woman,  was  exe- 
cuted on  the  tenth  of  June,  the  court  then  adjourned. 
The  government  during  their  recess  consulted  several  of 
the  (congregational)  ministers  of  Boston  and  its  vicinity 
respecting  the  prosecutions,  who,  while  they  urged  the 
importance  of  caution  and  circumspection  in  the  methods 
of  examination   and   the  admission   of  testimony,  at  the 


SALEM    WITCHCRAFT    DELUSION.  79 

same  time  decidedly  and  earnestly  recommended  that  the 
proceedings  should  be  'vigorously  carried  on?  And  they 
were  vigorously  carried  on  ! — The  court  sat  again  on  the 
thirtieth  of  June,  and  five  more  old  women  were  hanged 
on  the  nineteenth  of  July.  The  court  sat  again  August 
the  fifth,  and  on  the  nineteenth  of  the  same  month  four 
men  and  one  woman  were  hanged.  And  on  the  twenty- 
second  of  September  two  men  and  six  women  were 
hanged.  Eight  more  were  condemned,  but  this  was  the 
last  execution.  One  man  refusing  to  put  himself  on  trial 
was  pressed  to  death,  agreeably  to  the  provisions  of  the 
English  laws. 

"  The  principal  immediate  effect  of  these  summary  and 
sanguinary  proceedings  was  to  render  the  accusers  more 
bold,  confident,  and  daring ;  they  began  to  feel  that  the 
lives  of  all  the  people  were  in  their  hands,  and  seemed 
at  last  to  have  experienced  a  fiend-like  satisfaction  in 
the  thought  of  bringing  infamy  and  death  upon  the  best 
and  most  honoured  citizens  of  the  colony.  They  repeat- 
edly "  cried  out "  upon  the  Rev.  Mr.  Willard,  the  author 
of  the  "Body  of  Divinity,"  one  of  the  most  revered  and 
beloved  ministers  of  the  times.  They  accused  a  member 
of  the  immediate  family  of  Dr.  Increase  Mather,  who 
had  recently  returned  from  a  special  embassy  to  the 
English  court  respecting  the  charter,  and  was  then  the 
president  of  Harvard  College — the  man  whom  Elliott 
calls  '  the  father  of  the  New  England  clergy,'  and  whose 
name  and  character  have  been  held  in  veneration  by  his 
contemporaries,  and  all  succeeding  generations.  A  writer 
of  that  period  intimates  that  they  accused  the  wife  of  the 
governor,  Sir  William  Phipps  ;  they  even  went  so  far,  it  is 
said,  as  to  implicate  one  of  the  judges  of  the  court. 

"  But  that  which  finally  overthrew  their  power,  and  broke 
the  spell  by  which  they  had  held  the  minds  of  the  whole 


80  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

coVony  in  bondage,  was  their  accusation  of  Mrs.  Hale,  the 
wife  of  the  minister  of  the  first  church  in  Beverly.  Her 
genuine  and  distinguished  virtues,  had  won  for  her  a  repu- 
tation, and  secured  in  the  hearts  of  the  people  a  confidence, 
which  superstition  itself  could  not  sully  nor  shake.  Mr. 
Hale  had  been  active  in  all  the  previous  proceedings  ;  but 
he  knew  the  innocence  and  piety  of  his  wife,  and  he  stood 
forth  between  her  and  the  storm  he  had  helped  to  raise. 
Although  he  had  driven  it  on  while  others  were  its  victims, 
he  turned  and  resisted  it  when  it  burst  in  upon  his  own 
dwelling.  In  crying  out  upon  Mrs.  Hale,  the  whole  com- 
munity was  convinced  that  the  accusers  had  perjured  them- 
selves, and  from  that  moment  their  power  was  destroyed  ; 
the  awful  delusion  ceased  ;  the  curtain  fell ;  and  a  close 
was  put  to  one  of  the  most  tremendous  tragedies  in  the  his- 
tory of  real  life.  The  wildest  storm,  perhaps,  that  ever 
raged  in  the  moral  world  instantly  became  a  calm ;  the 
tide  that  had  threatened  to  overwhelm  every  thing  in  its 
fury,  sunk  back  in  a  moment  to  its  peaceful  bed.  There 
are  few,  if  any  other  instances,  in  history  of  a  revolution 
of  opinion  and  feeling  so  sudden,  so  rapid,  and  so  complete. 
The  images  and  visions  that  had  possessed  the  bewildered 
imaginations  of  the  people  flitted  away,  and  left  them  stand- 
ing in  the  clear  sunshine  of  reason  and  their  senses  ;  and  they 
could  have  exclaimed  as  they  witnessed  them  passing  off 
in  the  language  of  the  great  master  of  the  drama,  and  of 
human  nature — but  that  their  rigid  puritan  principles  would 
not,  it  is  presumed,  have  permitted  them,  even  in  that  mo- 
ment of  rescue  and  deliverence,  to  quote  Shakespeare  : — 

'  See !  they're  gone — 
The  earth  has  bubbles  as  the  waters  have, 
And  these  are  some  of  them !  they  vanished 
Into  the  air,  and  what  seemed  corporal 
Melted  as  breath  into  the  wind.' 


SALEM    WITCHCRAFT    DELUSION.  81 

"  During  the  prevalence  of  this  fanaticism,  twenty  per- 
sons lost  their  lives  by  the  hand  of  the  executioner,  fifty- 
five  escaped  death  by  confessing  themselves  guilty,  one 
hundred  and  fifty  were  in  prison,  and  more  than  two  hun- 
dred others  accused. 

"  One  adventurous  and  noble  spirited  young  man  found 
means  to  effect  his  mother's  escape  from  confinement,  fled 
with  her  on  horseback  from  the  vicinity  of  the  jail,  and  se- 
creted her  in  the  Blueberry  Swamp,  not  far  from  Tapley's 
brook  in  the  Great  Pasture  ;  he  protected  her  concealment 
there  until  after  the  delusion  had  passed  away,  provided 
food  and  clothing  for  her,  erected  a  wigwam  for  her  shelter, 
and  surrounded  her  with  every  comfort  her  situation  would 
admit  of.  The  poor  creature  must,  however,  have  endured 
a  great  amount  of  suffering,  for  one  of  her  larger  limbs  was 
fractured  in  the  all  but  desperate  enterprise  of  rescuing  her 
from  the  prison.  Immediately  upon  the  termination  of  the 
excitement  all  who  were  in  prison  wTere  pardoned.  Nothing 
more  was  heard  of  the  afflicted  or  the  confessors  ;  they 
were  never  called  to  account  for  their  malicious  imposture 
and  perjury.  It  was  apprehended  that  a  judicial  investiga- 
tion might  renew  the  excitement  and  delusion,  and  all 
were  anxious  to  consign  the  whole  subject  as  speedily  and 
effectually  as  possible  to  oblivion."* 

*  Upham,  p.  20.  etc. 

6 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

SALEM  WITCHCRAFT    DELUSION. DISCOVERY    AND    EXPO- 
SURE   OF    THE    PRINCIPAL    CONSPIRATORS. FRUITS    OF 

FAITH. 

Much  as  fanaticism,  and  puritanical  teaching  accom- 
plish, when  its  sway  is  absolute,  in  subduing  the  human 
intellect,  and  benumbing  the  moral  perceptions,  yet  there 
was  sufficient  intelligence  and  enlightenment  left  in  the 
community  to  produce  an  early  reaction  of  public  feeling. 
The  triumph  of  Mather  and  his  colleagues  was  short 
lived  ! — one  of  the  first  events  that  opened  the  eyes  of  a 
large  number  as  to  the  motives  which  were  secondary  in 
the  direful  transactions,  was  a  "church  council"  convened 
at  Salem,  to  compose  the  difficulties  existing  between  Mr. 
Parris  and  his  congregation,  "  It  is  evident"  writes  Mr. 
Upham  (Mr.  Noyes's  successor  be  it  remembered)  "  from 
the  documents  connected  with  the  proceedings  of  these 
councils,  that  the  disaffected  members  of  his  society  re- 
garded his  conduct  in  the  preceding  tragedy  with  an  aver- 
sion and  horror  that  can  only  be  accounted  for  on  the  hy- 
pothesis, that  they  suspected  him  of  having  acted,  not 
merely  under  the  influence  of  an  indiscreet  enthusiasm,  but 
from  dishonest  and  malignant  motives.  This  suspicion 
was  very  much  confirmed  by  the  circumstance  that  the  old 
Indian  woman,  who  by  declaring  herself  guilty  of  the 
charge  of  witchcraft,  first  gave  credit  and  power  to  the  ac- 
cusers always  asserted  that  she  was  whipped  by  Mr.  Parris 
until  she  consented  to  make  a  confession.     But  however  it 


SALEM    WITCHCRAFT    DELUSION.  83 

may  have  been  with  him — and  in  the  absence  of  conclu- 
sive testimony,  we  must  leave  his  guilt  or  innocence  to  the 
decisions  of  a  higher  tribunal — so  strong  and  deeply  rooted 
were  the  feelings  of  disapprobation  and  aversion  towards 
him  which  occupied  the  breasts  of  his  disaffected  parish- 
ioners, that  all  attempts  on  the  part  of  the  other  churches 
to  produce  a  reconciliation,  and  even  his  own  humble  and 
solemn  acknowledgment  of  his  error,  were  unavailing,  and 
he  was  compelled  to  resign  his  situation,  and  remove  from 
the  place."* 

Mr.  Burroughs,  the  victim  of  a  local  conspiracy,  had 
officiated  as  a  candidate  for  the  pastoral  charge  at  Salem, 
and  possessing  acceptable  talents  had  received  an  invita- 
tion to  settle  there,  which  brought  him  into  collision  with 
several  of  the  inhabitants.  The  following  is  the  recanta- 
tion of  a  young  woman  whose  testimony  had  been  used  by 
his  enemies.  She  had  also  been  prevailed  upon  to  testify 
against  her  own  grandfather.  Both  were  condemned  and 
executed  upon  her  evidence. 

"  The  humble  declaration  of  Margaret  Jacobs  unto  the 
honoured  Court  now  sitting  at  Salem,  sheweth. — That 
whereas  your  poor  and  humble  declarant,  being  closely 
confined  here  in  Salem  gaol  for  the  crime  of  witchcraft ; 
which  crime,  thanks  be  to  the  Lord,  I  am  altogether  igno- 
rant of,  as  will  appear  at  the  great  day  of  Judgment. 
May  it  please  the  honoured  court,  I  was  cried  out  upon  by 
some  of  the  possessed  persons  as  afflicting  them  ;  where- 
upon I  was  brought  to  my  examination,  which  persons  at 
the  sight  of  me  -fell  down,  which  did  very  much  startle  and 
affright  me.  The  Lord  above  knows  I  knew  nothing  in 
the  least  measure,  how  or  who  afflicted  them ;  they  told 
me  without  doubt  I  did,  or  else  they  would  not  fall  down 
at  me ;  they  told  me  if  I  would  not  confess  I  should  be  put 
*  Upham's  Lectures,  pp.  56-7. 


84  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

down  into  the  dungeon  and  would  be  hanged  ;  but  if  I 
would  confess  I  should  have  my  life  ;  the  which  did  so  af- 
fright me,  with  my  own  vile  wicked  heart,  to  save  my  life, 
made  me  make  the  like  confession  I  did  ;  which  confession, 
may  it  please  the  honoured  court,  is  altogether  false  and 
untrue.  The  very  first  night  after  I  made  my  confession 
I  was  in  such  horror  of  conscience  I  could  not  sleep  for  fear 
the  devil  should  carry  me  away  for  telling  such  horrible 
lies.  I  was,  may  it  please  the  honoured  court,  sworn  to 
my  confession  as  I  understand  since,  but  then  at  that  time 
was  ignorant  of  it,  not  knowing  what  an  oath  did  mean. 
The  Lord  I  hope,  in  whom  I  trust,  out  of  the  abundance 
of  his  mercy  will  forgive  me  my  false  forswearing  myself. 
What  I  said  was  altogether  false  against  my  grandfather 
and  Mr.  Burroughs,  which  I  did  to  save  my  life  and  to 
have  my  liberty  ;  but  the  Lord,  charging  it  to  my  con- 
science, made  me  in  so  much  horror  that  I  could  not  con- 
tain myself  before  I  had  denied  my  confession,  which  I 
did,  though  I  saw  nothing  but  death  before  me,  choosing 
rather  death  with  a  quiet  conscience  than  to  live  in  such 
horror  which  I  could  not  suffer.  When  upon  denying  my 
confession,  I  was  committed  to  close  prison,  where  I  have 
enjoyed  more  felicity  in  spirit  a  thousand  times  than  I  did 
in  my  enlargement.  And  now  may  it  please  your  honours, 
your  declarant  having  in  part  given  your  honours  a  de- 
scription of  my  condition,  do  leave  it  to  your  honours'  pi- 
ous and  judicious  discretions  to  take  pity  and  compassion 
on  my  young  and  tender  years  ;  to  act  and  do  with  me  as 
the  Lord  above  and  your  honours  shall  see  good,  having 
no  friend  but  the  Lord  to  plead  my  cause  for  me  ;  not  be- 
ing guilty  in  the  least  measure  of  the  crime  of  witchcraft, 
nor  any  other  sin  that  deserves  death  from  man  ;  and  your 
poor  and  humble  declarant  shall  forever  pray  as  she  is 
bound  in  duty  for  your  honours'  happiness  in  this  life,  and 


SALEM    WITCHCRAFT    DELUSION.  85 

eternal  felicity  in  the  world  to  come — so  prays  your  hon- 
ours' declarant. 

Margaret  Jacobs." 

The  poor  wretch  wrote  the  following  letter  to  her  father 
after  her  grandfather's  execution, 

"  From  the  dungeon  in  Salem  prison. 
"  August  20th,  1692. 
"  Honoured  Father — After  my  humble  duty  remembered 
to  you  hoping  of  the  Lord  in  your  good  health,  as  blessed 
be  God  I  enjoy,  though  in  abundance  of  affliction  being 
close  confined  here  in  a  loathsome  dungeon  ;  the  Lord  look 
down  in  mercy  upon  me,  not  knowing  how  soon  I  may  be 
put  to  death  by  means  of  the  afflicted  persons  ;  my  grand- 
father having  suffered  already  and  all  his  estate  seized  for 
the  king.  The  reason  of  my  confinement  is  this  : — I  hav- 
ing through  the  magistrates'  threatnings  and  ray  own  vile 
and  wretched  heart,  confessed  several  things  contrary  to 
my  conscience  and  knowledge,  though  to  the  wounding  of 
my  own  soul  (the  Lord  pardon  me  for  it ;)  but  oh  the  ter- 
rors of  a  wounded  conscience  who  can  bear  ?  But  blessed 
be  the  Lord,  he  would  not  let  me  go  on  in  my  sins,  but  in 
mercy,  I  hope,  to  my  soul  would  not  suffer  me  to  keep  it 
any  longer,  but  I  was  forced  to  confess  the  truth  of  all  be- 
fore the  magistrates  who  would  not  believe  me  ;  but  it  is 
their  pleasure  to  put  me  in  here,  and  God  knows  how  soon 
I  shall  be  put  to  death.  Dear  father,  let  me  beg  your 
prayers  to  the  Lord  on  my  behalf,  and  send  us  a  joyful 
and  happy  meeting  in  heaven.  My  mother,  poor  woman, 
is  very  crazy,  and  remembers  her  kind  love  to  you,  and  to 
uncle,  viz.  D.  A.  So  leaving  you  to  the  protection  of  the 
Lord,  I  rest  your  dutiful  daughter, 

"  Margaret  Jacobs." 


86  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

The  fate  of  Mr.  Burroughs  sent  a  thrill  of  horror  through 
the  whole  community,  which  it  required  all  the  art  and 
sophistry  of  the  board  of  ministers  to  calm.  He  was  a 
highly  educated  man,  had  received  the  honours  of  Har- 
ward  University  in  1670,  of  a  spotless  life,  and  no  charge 
of  inconsistency  as  a  minister  of  the  gospel  had  ever  been 
attempted  to  be  brought  against  him.  On  the  day  before 
his  execution  the  unfortunate  Margaret  Jacobs  obtained 
permission  to  visit  him,  when  she  made  a  full  acknowledge- 
ment of  her  perjury  and  prayed  his  forgiveness.  This  he 
freely  gave  her,  and  spent  some  time  in  prayer  with  her. 
When  the  hour  arrived  for  his  execution,  "  he  was  carried 
in  a  cart  with  other  convicts  from  the  jail,  which  is  sup- 
posed to  have  stood  on  the  the  northern  corner  of  County 
and  St.  Peter's  streets,  the  procession  probably  passing 
down  St.  Peter's  into  Essex  street,  and  thence  onward  to 
the  rocky  elevation  called  '  Gallows  hill,'  about  an  eighth 
of  a  mile  towards  Danvers,  beyond  the  head  of  Federal 
street,  where  the  executions  took  place.  '  While  Mr.  Bur- 
roughs was  on  the  ladder,'  a  contemporary  writer  observes, 
'  he  made  a  speech  for  the  clearing  of  his  innocency  with 
such  solemn  and  serious  expressions  as  were  to  the  admira- 
tion of  all  present ;  his  prayer  was  so  well  worded,  and 
uttered  with  such  composedness,  and  such  fervency  of 
spirit  as  was  very  affecting,  and  drew  tears  from  many,  so 
that  it  seemed  to  some  that  the  spectators  would  hinder  the 
execution.'  To  meet  and  turn  back  this  state  of  feeling, 
the  accusers  cried  out  that  they  saw  the  evil  being  standing 
behind  him  in  the  shape  of  a  black  man,  and  dictating 
every  word  he  uttered.  And  the  [injfamous  Cotton  Mather 
rode  round  in  the  crowd  on  horseback,  haranguing  the 
people  and  saying  that  it  was  not  to  be  wondered  at 
that  Mr.  Burroughs  appeared  so  well,  for  that  the  devil 
often  transformed  himself  into   an  angel  of  light.     This 


SALEM    WITCHCRAFT    DELUSION.  87 

artful  declaration,  together  with  the  outcries  and  assertions 
of  the  accusers,  had  the  intended  effect  upon  the  fanatical 
multitude.  When  the  body  was  cut  down,  it  was  dragged 
by  the  rope  to  a  hollow  place  excavated  between  the  rocks, 
stripped  of  its  garments  and  then  covered  with  clothes  that 
had  belonged  to  some  poor  wretch  previously  executed, 
thrown  with  two  others  into  the  hole,  trampled  down  by  the 
mob,  and  finally  left  uncovered."* 

The  case  of  Rebecca  Nurse  affords  a  glaring  instance  of 
judicial  oppression,  unsurpassed  by  any  of  the  acts  of  Judge 
Jeffries.  The  jury  having  heard  no  evidence  worthy  of  the 
name,  returned  a  verdict  of  "not  guilty."  Immediately 
upon  hearing  it  the  malignant  and  fiendlike  accusers  ut- 
tered a  loud  outcry  in  open  court !  The  judges  were  over- 
come by  the  general  clamour,  and  intimidated  from  the 
faithful  discharge  of  their  sacred  duty.  They  expressed 
their  dissatisfaction  with  the  verdict.  One  of  the  judges 
declared  his  disapprobation  with  great  vehemence,  another 
said  she  should  be  indicted  anew,  and  the  Chief  Justice  in- 
timated to  the  jury  that  they  had  overlooked  one  important 
piece  of  evidence.  It  was  this  ;— during  the  trial  a  woman 
named  Hobbs  who  had  confessed  herself  a  witch  was 
brought  into  court,  and  as  she  entered  the  prisoner  turned 
towards  her  and  said,  '  What !  do  you  bring  her  ?  she  is 
one  of  us.'  The  jury  were  thus  prevailed  upon  to  go  out 
again ;  they  soon  returned,  pronouncing  the  poor  old  wo- 
man '  Guilty.'  After  her  conviction  she  addressed  the  fol- 
lowing note  to  the  judges. 

'  These  presents  do  humbly  show  to  the  honoured  court 
and  jury  that  I  being  informed  that  the  jury  brought  me  in 
guilty  upon  my  saying  that  goodwife  Hobbs  and  her  daugh- 
ter were  of  our  company,  but  I  intended  no  otherways, 
than  as  they  were  prisoners  with  us  and  therefore  did  then 
*  Upham,  p,  102. 


88         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

and  yet  do  judge  them  not  legal  evidence  against  their  fel- 
low prisoners.  And  I  being  something  hard  of  hearing  and 
full  of  grief,  none  informing  me  how  the  court  took  up  my 
words,  and  therefore  had  no  opportunity  to  declare  what  I 
intended  when  I  said  they  were  of  our  company, 

'Rebecca  Nurse." 

The  governor,  it  appears,  wished  to  grant  her  a  reprieve, 
but  on  discovering  his  intention  the  accusers  renewed  their 
outcries  against  her,  and  on  the  earnest  persuasion  of  his 
clerical  and  lay  advisers,  gave  orders  for  her  execution, 
which  took  place  within  a  few  weeks  after  her  conviction. 

The  case  of  Giles  Cory  was  also  an  aggravated  example 
of  cruelty.  He  was  a  communicant  of  the  "  First  [congre- 
gational] Church"  in  Danvers  and  probably  one  of  Mr.  Bur- 
roughs' supporters.  When  he  saw  that  trial  was  a  mere 
mockery,  he  indignantly  refused  to  plead  to  the  indictment, 
nor  could  the  threat  of  the  torture  change  his  resolution. 
He  was  accordingly  conveyed  to  the  press,  under  the  ag- 
ony of  which  he  expired.  His  executioners  showed  a  re- 
finement of  cruelty  during  the  moments  of  his  suffering. 
The  New  England  historian  records  that  "as  his  aged 
frame  yielded  to  the  dreadful  pressure  his  tongue  was  pro- 
truded from  his  mouth.  The  demon  who  presided  over 
the  torture  drove  it  back  again  with  the  point  of  his  cane," 
and  adds  with  an  earnestness  which  does  him  honour, — 
"  The  heart  of  man  once  turned  to  cruelty  seems,  like  the 
fleshed  tiger,  to  gather  new  fury  in  the  mere  exercise  of 
ferocity."* 

The  following  touching  narrative  left  by  "  a  respectable 
citizen  of  Charlestown  "  near  Boston,  will  afford  a  view 
of  the  common  methods  of  examination  ;  though  in  many 

*  Upham,  p.  88. 


SALEM    WITCHCRAFT    DELUSION.  89 

cases  a  simple  accusation  from  a  "  possessed "  person  was 
sufficient  to  procure  a  verdict  of  guilty. 

"May  21th,  1693. 

"  I  having  heard  some  days  that  my  wife  was  accused 
of  witchcraft,  being  much  disturbed  at  it,  by  advice 
went  to  Salem  village  to  see  if  the  afflicted  knew  her. 
We  arrived  there  on  the  24th  of  May  ;  it  happened  to  be 
a  day  appointed  for  examination.  Accordingly,  soon  after 
our  arrival,  Mr.  Hatham,  Mr.  Curwin,  etc.,  went  to  the 
meeting  house,  which  was  the  place  appointed  for  that 
work.  The  minister  began  with  prayer,  and  having  taken 
care  to  get  a  convenient  place,  I  observed  that  the  afflicted 
were  two  girls  of  about  ten  years  old,  and  two  or  three 
others  of  about  eighteen  ;  one  of  the  girls  talked  most, 
and  could  discern  more  than  the  rest. 

"  The  prisoners  were  called  in  one  by  one,  and  as  they 
came  in  were  cried  out  at.  The  prisoners  were  placed 
about  seven  or  eight  feet  from  the  justices  and  the  accusers 
between  the  justices  and  them  ;  the  prisoners  were  ordered 
to  stand  right  before  the  justices,  with  an  officer  appointed 
to  hold  each  hand  lest  they  should  therewith  afflict  them ; 
and  the  prisoners'  eyes  must  be  constantly  on  the  justices ; 
for  if  they  looked  on  the  afflicted  they  would  either  fall  into 
fits  or  cry  out  of  being  hurt  by  them.  After  an  examination 
of  the  prisoners,  who  it  was  afflicted  these  girls,  etc.,  they 
were  put  upon  saying  the  Lord's  Prayer  as  a  trial  of  their 
guilt.  After  the  afflicted  seemed  to  be  out  of  their  fits, 
they  would  look  steadfastly  on  some  one  person,  and  fre- 
quently not  speak  ;  and  then  the  justices  said  they  were 
struck  dumb,  and  after  a  little  time  would  speak  again  : 
then  the  justices  said  to  the  accusers,  'Which  of  you  will 
go  and  touch  the  prisoner  at  the  bar?'  Then  the  most 
courageous  would   adventure,  but   before  they  had  made 


90  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

three  steps  would  ordinarily  fall  down  as  in  a  fit  ;  the 
justices  ordered  that  they  should  be  taken  up  and  carried 
to  the  prisoner,  that  she  might  touch  them,  and  as  soon  as 
they  were  touched  by  the  accused,  the  justice  would  say, 
"  They  are  well," — before  1  could  discern  any  alteration, 
by  which  I  observed  that  the  justices  understood  the  manner 
of  it.  Thus  far  I  was  only  as  a  spectator  ;  my  wife  also  was 
there  part  of  the  time,  but  no  notice  was  taken  of  her  by 
the  afflicted,  except  once  or  twice  they  came  to  her  and 
asked  her  name.  But  I  having  an  opportunity  to  discourse 
Mr.  Hale  (with  whom  I  had  formerly  acquaintance)  I  took 
his  advice  what  I  had  best  do,  and  desired  of  him  that 
I  might  have  an  opportunity  to  speak  with  her  that  accused 
my  wife  ;  which  he  promised  should  be,  I  acquainting  him 
that  I  reposed  my  trust  in  him.  Accordingly  he  came  to 
me  after  the  examination  was  over,  and  told  me  I  had  now 
an  opportunity  to  speak  with  the  said  accuser,  Abigail 
Williams,  a  girl  eleven  or  twelve  years  old  ;  but  that  we 
could  not  be  in  private  at  Mr.  Parris's  house,  as  he  had 
promised  me ;  we  went  therefore  into  the  alehouse,  where 
an  Indian  man  attended  us,  who  it  seems  was  one  of  the 
afflicted  ;  to  him  we  gave  some  cider  ;  he  showed  several 
scars  that  seemed  as  if  they  had  been  long  there,  and 
showed  them  as  done  by  witchcraft,  and  acquainted  us  that 
his  wife,  who  also  was  a  slave,  was  imprisoned  for  witch- 
craft. And  now  instead  of  one  accuser  they  all  came  in, 
and  began  to  tumble  down  like  swine  ;  and  then  three 
women  were  called  in  to  attend  them.  We  in  the  room 
were  all  at  a  stand  to  see  who  they  would  cry  out  of;  but 
in  a  short  time  they  cried  out  'Cary,' — and  immediately 
after  a  warrant  was  sent  from  the  justices  to  bring  my  wife 
before  them,  who  were  sitting  in  a  chamber  near  by  wait- 
ing for  this.  Being  brought  before  the  justices  her  chief 
accusers  were  two  girls.     My  wife  declared  to  the  justices, 


SALEM    WITCHCRAFT    DELUSION.  91 

that  she  never  had  any  knowledge  of  them  before  that  day. 
She  was  forced  to  stand  with  her  arms  stretched  out.  I 
requested  that  I  might  hold  one  of  her  hands,  but  it  was 
denied  me  ;  then  she  desired  me  to  wipe  the  tears  from  her 
eyes,  and  the  sweat  from  her  face,  which  I  did ;  then  she 
desired  she  might  lean  herself  on  me,  saying  she  should 
faint.  Justice  Hathorn  replied  she  had  strength  enough  to 
torment  these  persons,  and  she  should  have  strength 
enough  to  stand.  I  speaking  something  against  their 
cruel  proceedings,  they  commanded  me  to  be  silent,  or 
else  I  should  be  turned  out  of  the  room. 

The  Indian  before-mentioned  was  also  brought  in  to  be 
one  of  her  accusers ;  being  come  in,  he  now  (when  before 
the  justices)  fell  down  and  tumbled  about  like  a  hog,  but 
said  nothing.  The  justices  asked  the  girls  who  afflicted 
the  Indian  ;  they  answered  '  she,'  (meaning  my  wife)  and 
that  she  now  lay  upon  him ;  the  justices  ordered  her  to 
touch  him  in  order  to  his  cure,  but  her  head  must  be  turn- 
ed another  way,  lest  instead  of  curing  she  should  make 
him  worse  by  her  looking  on  him,  her  hand  being  guided  to 
take  hold  of  his ;  but  the  Indian  took  hold  of  her  hand 
and  pulled  her  down  on  the  floor  in  a  barbarous  manner  ; 
then  his  hand  was  taken  off,  and  her  hand  put  on  his  hand 
the  cure  was  quickly  wrought.  I  being  extremely  troubled 
at  their  inhuman  dealings  uttered  a  hasty  speech  "that 
God  would  take  vengeance  on  them,  and  desired  that  God 
would  deliver  us  out  of  the  hands  of  unmerciful  men." 
Then  her  mittimus  was  writ.  I  did  with  difficulty  and 
charge  obtain  the  liberty  of  a  room  but  no  beds  in  it. ;  if 
there  had  been  could  have  taken  but  little  rest  that  night. 
She  was  committed  to  Boston  prison ;  but  I  obtained  a 
habeas  corpus  to  remove  her  to  Cambridge  prison,  which  is 
in  our  county  of  Middlesex.  Having  been  there  one  night, 
next  morning  the  jailer  put  irons  on  her  legs  (having  re- 


92  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

ceived  such  a  command)  the  weight  of  them  was  about 
eight  pounds ;  these  irons  and  her  other  afflictions  soon 
brought  her  into  convulsion  fits,  so  that  I  thought  she 
would  have  died  that  night.  I  sent  to  intreat  that  the  irons 
might  be  taken  off;  but  all  entreaties  were  in  vain  if  it 
would  have  saved  her  life,  so  that  in  this  condition  she 
must  continue.  The  trials  at  Salem  coming  on,  I  went  thi- 
ther, to  see  how  things  were  managed ;  %and  finding  that 
the  spectre  evidence  was  there  received,  together  with  idle, 
if  not  malicious  stories  against  people's  lives,  I  did  easily 
perceive  which  way  the  rest  would  go ;  for  the  same  evi- 
dence that  served  for  one  would  serve  for  all  the  rest.  I  ac- 
quainted her  with  her  danger ;  and  that  if  she  were  car- 
ried to  Salem  to  be  tried,  I  feared  she  would  never  return. 
I  did  my  utmost  that  she  might  have  her  trial  in  her  own 
county.  I  with  several  others  petitioning  the  judge  for  it, 
and  were  put  in  hopes  of  it,  but  I  soon  saw  so  much  that  I 
understood  thereby  it  was  not  intended,  which  put  me  upon 
consulting  the  means  of  her  escape  ;  which  through  the 
goodness  of  God  was  effected,  and  she  got  to  Rhode  Island, 
but  soon  found  herself  not  safe  when  there,  by  reason  of 
the  pursuit  after  her  ;  from  thence  she  went  to  New  York 
along  with  some  others  that  had  escaped  their  cruel  hands, 
where  we  found  his  excellency  Benjamin  Fletcher,  Esq., 
governor,  who  was  very  courteous  to  us.  After  this  some 
of  my  goods  were  seized  in  a  friend's  hands  with  whom  I 
had  left  them,  and  myself  imprisoned  by  the  sheriff  and 
kept  in  custody  half  a  day,  and  then  dismissed;  but  to 
speak  of  their  usage  of  the  prisoners  and  the  inhumanity 
shown  to  them  at  the  time  of  their  execution  no  sober 
Christian  could  bear !  They  had  also  '  trials  of  cruel 
mockings,'  which  is  the  more  heinous  considering  what  a 
people  for  religion — /  mean  the  profession  of  it — we  have 
been ;    those  that   suffered  being  many  of  them  church 


SALEM    WITCHCRAFT    DELUSION.  93 

members,  and  most  of  them  unspotted  in  their  conversa- 
tion, till  their  adversary  the  devil  took  up  this  method  for 
accusing  them. 

Jonathan  Cary.' 

"  Every  idle  rumour,"  writes  Mr.  Upham,  "  every  thing 
that  the  gossip  of  the  credulous,  or  the  fertile  memories  of 
the  malignant  could  produce,  that  had  an  unfavourable 
bearing  upon  the  prisoner,  however  foreign  it  might  be 
from  the  indictment,  was  allowed  to  be  brought  in  evidence 
before  the  jury,  A  child  between  five  and  six  years  of  age 
was  arrested  and  put  into  prison.  Children  were  encour- 
aged to  become  witnesses  against  their  parents,  and  parents 
against  their  children. 

It  was  the  worst  feature  in  these  transactions,  that  they 
were  first  instigated,  and  then  vigorously  prosecuted  by  the 
clergy.  Such  is  the  testimony  of  the  most  prejudiced  na- 
tive historians.  "  They  took  the  lead  in  the  whole  trans- 
action," writes  Mr.  Upham.  "  As  the  supposed  agents  of 
all  the  mischief  belonged  to  the  supernatural  or  spiritual 
world,  which  has  ever  been  considered  their  peculiar  pro- 
vince, it  was  thought  that  the  assistance  and  co-operation 
of  ministers  were  particularly  appropriate  and  necessary. 
It  has  been  mentioned  that  the  government  consulted 
the  ministers  of  Boston  and  the  vicinity,  after  the  execu- 
tion of  the  first  person  convicted,  and  previous  to  the  trial 
of  the  others,  and  that  they  returned  a  positive  and  ear- 
nest recommendation  to  '  proceed  in  the  good  work.'  "* 

*  Upham,  p.  89. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

THE    SALEM    DELUSION. — NOYES    AND    MATHER. 

One  Noyes  figured  conspicuously  through  the  scenes 
of  the  tragedy,  and  won  an  execrable  repute  for  his  furious 
Bonner  like  oppression  of  the  wretched  martyrs  to  puritani- 
cal rage.  This  butcher  was  the  "junior  pastor"  of  the 
"  First  (congregational)  Church"  in  Salem.  Rebecca  Nurse, 
whose  conviction  was  obtained  by  the  bullying  and  threats 
of  the  judges,  instigated  by  Noyes  and  his  clerical  col- 
leagues, was  a  member  of  the  "  first  church."  "  On  the 
communion  day  that  intervened  between  her  conviction 
and  execution  he  procured  a  vote  of  excommunication  to 
be  passed  against  her.  In  the  afternoon  of  the  same  day, 
the  poor  old  woman  was  carried  to  the  great  and  spacious 
meeting  house  in  chains,  and  there  in  the  presence  of  a 
vast  assembly  Mr.  Noyes  proclaimed  her  expulsion  from 
the  Church,  pronounced  the  sentence  of  eternal  death  upon 
her,  formally  delivered  her  over  to  Satan,  and  consigned 
her  to  the  flames  of  hell !  It  is  related  however,  that  as 
soon  as  the  fanaticism  had  disappeared,  the  recollection  of 
her  excellent  character,  and  virtuous  and  pious  life  effaced 
the  reproach  of  the  spiritual  as  well  as  the  temporal  sen- 
tence."* 

Mr.  Upham's  further  notice  of  the  infamous  part  taken 
by  the  inquisitor  Noyes,  is  too  important  to  be  omitted  in 
this  record. 

*  Upham's  Lectures,  p.  90. 


A    PURITAN    INQUISITOR.  95 

"  Martha  Cory,  the  wife  of  Giles  Cory,  was  a  member 
of  the  (independent)  church  in  Danvers.  A  committee 
consisting  of  the  pastor,  the  two  deacons,  and  another 
member  was  sent  by  the  church  to  the  prison  to  promul- 
gate to  her  a  doom  similar  to  that  to  which  Rebecca  Nurse 
was  consigned  the  day  after  her  conviction.  Mr.  Parris 
declares  in  the  records  of  the  church  that  they  found  her 
'  very  obdurate,  justifying  herself,  and  condemning  all  who 
had  done  any  thing  to  her  just  discovery  or  condemnation.' 
Whereupon  after  a  little  discourse  (for  says  he  '  her  impe- 
riousness  would  not  suffer  much)  and  after  prayer  (which 
she  was  willing  to  decline)  the  dreadful  sentence  of  ex- 
communication was  pronounced  against  her.' 

"  Mr.  Noyes  was  also  very  active  to  prevent  a  revulsion 
of  the  public  mind,  or  even  the  least  diminution  of  the 
popular  violence  against  the  supposed  witches.  As  they 
all  protested  their  innocence  to  the  moment  of  death,  and 
as  most  of  them  exhibited  a  remarkably  Christian  deport- 
ment throughout  the  dreadful  scenes  they  were  called  to 
encounter  from  their  arrest  to  their  execution,  there  was 
reason  to  apprehend  that  the  people  would  gradually  be 
led  to  feel  a  sympathy  for  them,  if  not  to  entertain  doubts 
of  their  guilt.  It  became  necessary,  therefore,  to  remove 
any  impressions  unfavourable  to  themselves  that  might  be 
made  by  the  conduct  and  declarations  of  the  convicts. 
Mr.  Noyes  and  others  were  on  the  ground  continually  for 
this  purpose." 

"  One  of  the  most  interesting  persons  among  the  inno- 
cent sufferers  was  Mrs.  Easty  of  Topsfield  ;  she  was  a  sis- 
ter of  Rebecca  Nurse.  Her  mind  appears  to  have  been 
uncommonly  strong  and  well  cultivated,  and  her  heart  the 
abode  of  the  purest  and  most  christian  sentiments.  After 
her  conviction,  she  addressed  the  following  letter  to  the 
judges  and  ministers,  by  which  it  appears  that  she  felt  for 


96  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

others  more  than  she  did  for  herself.  It  is  a  striking  and 
affecting  specimen  of  good  sense,  of  Christian  fortitude,  of 
pious  humility,  of  noble  benevolence,  and  of  the  real  elo- 
quence of  the  heart. 

"  '  To  the  honourable  judge  and  bench  now  sitting  in 
judicature  in  Salem  and  the  reverend  ministers  humbly 
sheweth  : — That  whereas  your  humble  and  poor  petitioner 
being  condemned  to  die,  doth  humbly  beg  of  you  to  take  it 
into  your  judicious  and  pious  consideration,  that  your  poor 
and  humble  petitioner,  knowing  my  own  innocency  (blessed 
be  the  Lord  for  it)  and  seeing  plainly  the  wiles  and  subtilty 
of  my  accusers  by  myself  cannot  but  judge  charitably  of 
others  that  are  going  the  same  way  with  myself,  if  the 
Lord  step  not  mightily  in.  I  was  confined  a  whole  month 
on  the  same  account  that  I  am  now  condemned,  and  then 
cleared  by  the  afflicted  persons  as  some  of  your  honours 
know ;  and  in  two  days  time  I  was  cried  out  upon  by  them 
again,  and  have  been  confined  and  am  now  condemned  to 
die.  The  Lord  above  knows  my  innocence  then  and  like- 
wise doth  now,  as  at  the  great  day  will  be  known  by  men 
and  angels.  I  petition  to  your  honours,  not  for  my  own  life, 
for  I  know  I  must  die,  and  my  appointed  time  is  set ;  but 
the  Lord  he  knows  if  it  be  possible  that  no  more  innocent 
blood  be  shed,  which  undoubtedly  cannot  be  avoided  in  the 
way  and  course  you  go  in.  I  question  not  but  your  hon- 
ours do  the  utmost  of  your  powers,  in  the  discovery  and  de- 
tecting of  witchcraft  and  witches,  and  would  not  be  guilty 
of  innocent  blood  for  the  world  ;  but  by  my  own  innocency 
I  know  you  are  in  the  wrong  way.  The  Lord  in  his  infinite 
mercy  direct  you  in  this  great  work  if  it  be  his  blessed  will, 
that  innocent  blood  be  not  shed.  I  would  humbly  beg  of 
you  that  your  honours  would  be  pleased  to  examine  some 
of  those  confessing  "  witches,"  I  being  confident  there  are 
several  of  them  have  belied  themselves  and  others,  as  will 


A    PURITAN    INQUISITOR.  97 

appear  if  not  in  this  world,  I  am  sure  in  the  world  to  come, 
whither  I  am  going  ;  and  I  question  not  but  yourselves  will 
see  an  alteration  in  these  things.  They  say  myself  and 
others  have  "  made  a  league  with  the  devil."  We  cannot 
confess  ;  I  know  and  the  Lord  knows  (as  will  shortly  ap- 
pear) they  belie  me,  and  so  I  question  not  but  they  do 
others  ;  the  Lord  alone  who  is  the  searcher  of  all  hearts 
knows — as  I  shall  answer  it  at  the  tribunal  seat — that  / 
know  not  the  least  thing  of  witchcraft,  therefore  I  cannot 
— I  durst  not  belie  my  own  soul.  I  beg  your  honours  not 
to  deny  this  my  humble  petition,  from  a  poor  dying  innocent 
person,  and  I  question  not  but  the  Lord  will  give  a  blessing 
to  your  endeavours. 

'  Mary  Easty.' 

"  The  parting  interview  of  this  excellent  lady  with  her 
husband,  children,  and  friends  is  said  to  have  been  a  most 
solemn,  affecting  and  sublime  scene.  She  was  executed 
with  seven  others.  Mr.  Noyes  turned  towards  their  bodies, 
and  exclaimed  with  a  compassion  that  was  altogether 
worthy  of  an  inquisitor,  '  What  a  sad  thing  it  is  to  see  eight 
fire-brands  of  hell  hanging  there  ! ! '" 

John  Proctor  of  Danvers  went  to  court  to  attend  his 
wife  during  her  examination  on  the  charge  of  witchcraft ; 
and  having  rendered  himself  disagreeable  to  the  prosecuting 
witnesses  by  the  interest  he  naturally  took  in  her  behalf, 
was  accused  by  them  on  the  spot  of  the  same  crime,  con- 
demned, and  executed.  Both  he  and  his  wife  sustained 
excellent  characters  in  the  village,  and  in  Ipswich  where 
they  formerly  resided.  He  wrote  the  following  spirited  and 
interesting  letter  to  the  [congregational]  ministers  of  Bosto^ 
requesting  to  be  tried  there,  and  protesting  against  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  court. 

7 


98         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

Salem  Prison,  July  23?'d,  1692. 

" <  Mr.  Mather,  Mr.  Allen,  Mr.  Moody,  Mr.  Willard  and 
Mr.  Baily  :— 

"  Reverend  Gentlemen — The  innocency  of  our  case, 
with  the  enmity  of  our  accusers,  and  our  judges  and  jury, 
whom  nothing  but  our  innocent  blood  will  serve,  having 
condemned  us  already  before  our  trials,  being  so  much  in- 
censed and  enraged  against  us  by  the  devil,  makes  us  bold 
to  beg  and  implore  your  favourable  assistance  of  this  our 
humble  petition  to  his  excellency,  that  if  it  be  possible  our 
innocent  blood  may  be  spared,  which  undoubtedly  other- 
wise will  be  shed,  if  the  Lord  doth  not  mercifully  step  in, 
the  magistrates,  ministers,  juries  and  all  the  people  in  gen- 
eral being  so  much  enraged  and  incensed  against  us,  by 
the  delusion  of  the  devil, — which  we  can  term  no  other  by 
reason  we  know  in  our  own  consciences,  we  are  all  inno- 
cent persons.  Here  are  five  persons  who  have  lately  con- 
fessed themselves  to  be  witches,  and  do  accuse  some  of  us 
of  being  along  with  them  at  a  sacrament  since  we  were 
committed  into  close  prison,  which  we  know  to  be  lies. 
Two  of  the  five  (Carrier's  sons)  are  young  men  who  would 
not  confess  anything  till  they  tied  them  neck  and  heels  till 
the  blood  was  ready  to  come  out  of  their  noses  ;  and  it  is 
credibly  believed  and  reported  this  was  the  occasion  of 
making  them  confess  what  they  never  did  by  reason  they 
said  '  one  had  been  a  witch  a  month,  and  another  five 
weeks,  and  that  their  mother  made  them  so' — who  has 
been  confined  here  this  nine  weeks ! !  My  son,  William 
Proctor,  when  he  was  examined  because  he  could  not  con- 
fess that  he  was  guilty  when  he  was  innocent,  they  tied 
neck  and  heels  till  the  blood  gushed  out  of  his  nose,  and 
would  have  kept  him  so  twenty-four  hours  if  one,  more 
merciful  than  the  rest,  had  not  taken  pity  on  him  and 
caused  him  to  be  unbound. 


A    PURITAN    INQUISITOR.  99 

"  These  actions  are  very  like  the  popish  cruelties.  They 
have  already  undone  us  in  our  estates,  and  that  will  not 
serve  their  turns  without  our  innocent  blood  !  If  it  cannot 
be  granted  that  we  can  have  our  trials  at  Boston,  we  hum- 
bly beg  that  you  would  endeavour  to  have  these  magis- 
trates changed,  and  others  in  their  room  ;  begging  also  and 
beseeching  you  that  you  would  be  pleased  to  be  here  if  not 
all,  some  of  you  at  our  trials,  hoping  thereby  you  may  be 
the  means  of  saving  the  shedding  of  our  innocent  blood. 
Desiring  your  prayers  to  the  Lord  in  our  behalf  we  rest 
your  poor  afflicted  servants 

John  Proctor,  &c.  &c. 

The  unfortunate  man's  appeal  to  the  ministers  of  the 
"  standing  order"  was  of  no  avail.  No  mitigation  of  his 
sufferings  was  allowed  by  his  iron  persecutors,  on  the  con- 
trary the  spirit  of  the  memorial  to  the  Executive  by  the 
congregational  ministers  "  to  proceed  vigorously  with  the 
work"  was  carried  out  with  augmented  severity  ;  and  the 
special  agent  of  the  Inquisitor  General,  the  blood-thirsty 
Noyes  was  the  willing  agent  of  the  Society's  vengeance 
against  a  victim  who  had  the  temerity  to  remonstrate 
(though  gently  enough,  God  knows  !)  against  its  barbari- 
ties. "  When  Proctor  was  in  prison,"  is  the  testimony  of 
Mr.  Upham,  "  all  his  property  was  attached,  every  thing 
was  taken  from  his  house,  his  family,  consisting  of  eleven 
children  were  left  destitute,  even  the  food  that  was  preparing 
for  their  dinner  was  carried  away  by  the  sheriff.  After 
his  conviction  he  petitioned  for  a  little  more  time  to  prepare 
to  die,  but  it  was  denied  him.  He  begged  Mr.  Noyes  to 
pray  with  him,  but  he  refused,  unless  he  would  confess  that 
he  was  guilty  !  His  numerous  family  was  not  permitted 
to  starve.  The  cruelty  that  snatched  the  bread  from  their 
mouths  was  overruled  by  a  merciful  providence.     His  de- 


100  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

scendants  who  are  found  in  all  parts  of  the  country,  oc- 
cupy at  this  moment  the  estate,  and  cultivate  the  fields 
which  he  owned. 

The  efforts  of  the  prosecutors  to  extort  confessions  from 
their  helpless  victims  is  specially  worthy  of  the  deepest  con- 
demnation ;  and  completes  the  portraiture  which  the  other 
parts  of  their  conduct  bear  to  that  of  the  actors  in  the  famed 
proceedings  by  the  heads  and  instruments  of  the  Spanish 
Inquisition.  "  They  importuned,  harassed  and  vexed  them 
continually  to  acknowledge  their  guilt.  The  public  were 
prejudiced  to  suspect  and  convict  of  witchcraft  all  persons 
in  whose  character  and  conduct  there  were  any  marks  of 
eccentricity  or  traits  of  peculiarity.  Sarah  Good  had  for 
some  time  previous  to  the  delusion,  been  subject  to  a  spe- 
cies of  mental  derangement  of  which  sadness  and  melan- 
choly were  the  prevailing  characteristics.  She  was  accord- 
ingly accused  of  witchcraft,  and  condemned  to  die.  Mr. 
Noyes  urged  her  very  strenuously  at  the  time  of  her  execu- 
tion to  confess.  Among  other  things  he  told  her  'She  was 
a  witch,  and  that  she  knew  she  was  a  witch.'  She  was 
conscious  of  her  innocence  and  felt  that  she  was  injured, 
oppressed  and  trampled  upon,  and  her  indignation  was 
roused  against  her  persecutors.  She  could  not  bear  in  si- 
lence the  cruel  aspersion,  and  although  she  was  about  to  be 
launched  into  eternity,  the  torrent  of  her  feelings  could  not 
be  restrained,  but  burst  upon  the  head  of  him  who  uttered 
the  false  accusation.  '  You  are  a  liar '  said  she,  '  I  am  no 
more  a  witch  than  you  are  a  wizard — and  if  you  take  away 
my  life,  God  will  give  you  blood  to  drink.'  "* 

Such  was  the  conduct  of  a  man  whom  the  New  Eng- 
land "  orthodox"  congregationalists  still  hold  up  as  one  of 
the  early  ornaments  of  their  communion ;  and  who  was 
only  a  few  years  ago  thus  alluded  to  in  a  Boston  paper. 

*  Upham,  p.  99,  etc. 


THE    ACCUSERS.  101 

"  It  is  no  wonder  that  Salem  and  the  adjacent  parts  of  the 
country ;  as  also  the  churches,  university  and  people  of 
New  England  justly  esteemed  him  as  a  principal  part  of 
their  glory."(H) 

Tradition,  however,  has  handed  down  the  circumstances 
of  Noye's  death ;  which  in  Mr.  Upham's  own  words, 
"  strangely  verified  the  prediction  wrung  from  the  incensed 
spirit  of  the  dying  old  woman" — and  which  it  were  not  su- 
perstitious to  regard  as  providentially  designed  to  fix  upon 
him  the  mark  of  divine  displeasure.  One  of  his  own  sect 
thus  sets  his  seal  to  the  belief  which  in  process  of  time  ex- 
tended throughout  the  community,  and  is  now  regarded  as 
matter  of  history. 

"  What  are  we  to  think  of  those  persons  who  commenced 
and  continued  the  accusation  of  the  afflicted  children  and 
their  confederates  ?  Shocking  as  is  the  view  it  presents  of 
the  extent  to  which  human  nature  can  be  carried  in  de- 
pravity, I  am  constrained  to  declare,  as  the  result  of  as 
thorough  a  scrutiny  as  I  could  institute,  my  belief  that 
this  dreadful  transaction  was  introduced  and  driven  on  by 
wicked  perjury  and  wilful  malice.  The  young  girls  in  Mr. 
Parris's  family  and  their  associates  on  several  occasions  in- 
dicated by  their  conduct  and  expressions  that  they  were 
acting  a  part.  It  would  be  much  more  congenial  with  our 
feelings  to  believe  that  these  misguided  and  wretched  young 
persons  early  in  the  proceedings  became  themselves  victims 
of  the  delusion  into  which  they  plunged  every  one  else. 
But  we  are  forbidden  to  form  this  charitable  judgment  by 
the  manifestations  of  art  and  contrivance,  of  deliberate 
cunning  and  cool  malice  they  exhibited  to  the  end.  Once 
or  twice  they  were  caught  in  their  own  snare,  and  nothing 
but  the  blindness  of  the  bewildered  community  saved  them 
from  disgraceful  exposure  and  well  deserved  punishment. 
They  appeared   as   the  prosecutors  of  almost   every  poor 


102        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

creature  that  was  tried,  and  seemed  ready  to  bear  testi- 
mony against  any  one  upon  whom  suspicion  might  happen 
to  fall.*  It  is  dreadful  to  reflect  upon  the  enormity  of  their 
wickedness,  if  they  were  conscious  of  imposture  throughout. 
It  seems  to  transcend  the  capabilities  of  human  crime. 
There  is,  perhaps,  a  slumbering  element  in  the  heart  of 
man  that  sleeps  forever  in  the  bosom  of  the  innocent  and 
good,  and  requires  the  perpetration  of  a  great  sin  to  wake  it 
into  action,  but  which  when  once  aroused,  impels  the  trans- 
gressor onward  with  increasing  momentum,  as  the  descend- 
ing ball  is  accelerated  in  its  course.     It  may  be  that  crime 

*  It  is  obvious  that  during  the  prevalence  of  the  fanaticism,  it  was  in  the 
power  of  every  man  to  bring  down  terrible  vengeance  upon  his  enemies  by  pre- 
tending to  be  "  bewitched"  by  them.  There  is  great  reason  to  fear  that  this  was 
often  the  case.  If  any  one  ventured  to  resist  the  proceedings,  or  to  intimate  a 
doubt  respecting  the  guilt  of  the  persons  accused,  the  accusers  would  consider  it 
as  an  affront  to  them,  and  proceed  instantly  to  "  cry  out"  against  him. 

The  wife  of  an  honest  and  worthy  man  in  Andover  was  sick  of  a  fever  of 
which  she  finally  died  ;  during  her  illness  it  occurred  to  him,  after  all  the  usual 
means  had  failed  to  cure  her  that  she  might  be  bewitched.  He  went  directly  to 
Danvers  to  ask  the  afflicted  persons  there  who  had  bewitched  his  wife.  Two 
of  them  returned  with  him  to  Andover.  Never  did  a  place  receive  more  inau- 
spicious visitors.  Soon  after  their  arrival  they  contrived  to  get  more  than  fifty 
of  the  inhabitants  imprisoned,  several  of  whom  were  afterwards  hanged  for 
witchcraft.  A  Mr.  Bradstreet,  the  magistrate  of  the  place,  alter  having  committed 
about  forty  persons  to  jail  on  their  accusation,  concluded  that  he  had  done 
enough,  and  declined  to  arrest  any  more;  the  consequence  was  that  they  ac- 
cused him  and  his  wife  of  being  witches  and  they  had  to  fly  for  their  lives.  A 
person  by  the  name  of  Willard  who  had  been  employed  to  guard  the  prisoners 
to  and  from  the  jail,  had  the  humanity  to  sympathise  with  the  sufferers,  and  the 
courage  to  express  his  unwillingness  to  continue  any  longer  in  the  odious  em- 
ployment. This  was  very  offensive  to  the  afflicted  children.  They  accordingly 
charged  him  with  bewitching  them.  The  unhappy  man  was  condemned  to 
death ;  he  contrived  to  escape  from  prison ;  they  were  thrown  into  the  greatest 
distress ;  the  news  came  that  he  was  retaken ;  their  agonies  were  moderated, 
and  at  length  he  was  hanged  and  then  they  were  wholly  relieved.  It  should 
be  added  that  many  of  the  accusers  turned  out  afterwards  very  badly,  becoming 
profligate  and  abandoned  characters. — See  Upham,  p.  53. 


mather's  defence.  103 

begets  an  appetite  for  crime,  which  like  all  other  appetites 
is  not  quieted  but  inflamed  by  gratification." 

It  has  been  stated  that  Cotton  Mather  endeavoured  to 
escape  the  odium  connected  with  the  Salem  persecutions. 
In  his  life  of  Sir  William  Phipps  the  governor  of  the  col- 
ony "  a  man"  says  Mr.  Upham  "  of  an  exceedingly  feeble 
intellect,  whom  Dr.  Mather  appeared  to  have  kept  by  flat- 
tery in  complete  subserviency  to  his  purposes,"  he  exhibits  a 
true  specimen  of  his  Jesuitical  cunning.  During  the  pro- 
secutions, when  the  fever  was  at  its  height,  the  governor 
appealed  for  counsel  and  guidance  to  his  spiritual  adviser, 
who  it  will  be  remembered,  with  the  ministers  of  Boston, 
advocated  the  carrying  on  of  the  work  "  speedily  and  vig- 
orously." In  quoting  the  state  papers  as  evidence  that  the 
clergy  recommended  "  caution  and  circumspection,"  Dr.  Ma- 
ther expunged  all  those  passages  urging  the  prosecution  of 
the  work  "  speedily  and  vigorously."  The  real  spirit  of  the 
man,  however,  leaks  out  in  the  following  passage,  which  af- 
fords a  choice  specimen  of  that  language  of  cant  and  hypo- 
crisy, of  which  the  English  nation  received  such  a  surfeit 
during  the  Cromwellian  usurpation. 

"  And  why,  after  all  my  unwearied  cares  and  pains  to 
rescue  the  miserable  from  the  lions  and  bears  of  hell,  which 
had  seized  them,  and  after  all  my  studies  to  disappoint  the 
devils  in  their  designs  to  confound  my  neighbourhood,  must 
I  be  driven  to  the  necessity  of  an  apology  ?  Truly  the 
hard  representations  wherewith  some  ill  men  have  reviled 
my  conduct,  and  the  countenance  which  other  men  have 
given  to  these  representations,  oblige  me  to  give  mankind 
some  account  of  my  behaviour.  No  Christian  can  (I  say 
none  but  evil  workers  can)  criminate  my  visiting  such  of  my 
poor  flock  as  have  at  any  time  fallen  under  the  terrible  and 
sensible  molestations  of  evil  angels :  let  their  afflictions 
have  been  what  they  will,  I  could  not  have  answered  it 


104  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

unto  my  glorious  Lord,  if  I  had  withheld  my  just  comforts 
and  counsels  from  them ;  and  if  I  have  also,  with  some  ex- 
actness, observed  the  methods' of  the  invisible  world,  when 
they  have  thus  become  observable,  I  have  been  but  a  ser- 
vant of  mankind  in  doing  so  :  yea,  no  less  a  person  than 
the  venerable  Baxter  has  more  than  once  or  twice  in  the 
most  public  manner  invited  mankind  to  thank  me  for  that 
service. 

"  Wherefore  instead  of  all  apish  shouts  and  jeers  at  his- 
tories which  have  such  undoubted  confirmation,  as  that  no 
man  that  has  breeding  enough  to  regard  the  common  laws 
of  human  society  will  offer  to  doubt  of  them ;  it  becomes 
us  better  to  adore  the  goodness  of  God,  who  does  not  per- 
mit such  things  every  day  to  befall  us  all,  as  he  sometimes 
did  permit  to  befall  some  few  of  our  miserable  neighbours. 

"  And  is  it  a  very  glorious  thing  that  I  have  now  to  men- 
tion.— The  devils  have  with  most  horrid  operations  broke 
in  upon  our  neighbourhood,  and  God  has  at  such  a  rate 
overruled  all  the  fury  and  malice  of  those  devils,  that  all 
the  afflicted  have  not  only  been  delivered  but  I  hope  also 
savingly  brought  home  to  God,  and  the  reputation  of  no 
one  good  person  in  the  world  has  been  damaged,  but  in- 
stead thereof  the  souls  of  many,  especially  of  the  rising 
generation,  have  been  thereby  awakened  unto  some  ac- 
quaintance with  religion.  Our  young  people  who  belonged 
unto  the  prayer  meetings,  of  both  sexes  apart,  would  ordinar- 
ily spend  whole  nights  by  whole  weeks  together  in  prayers 
and  psalms  upon  these  occasions,  in  which  devotions  the 
devils  could  get  nothing,  but  like  fools  a  scourge  for  their 
own  backs ;  and  some  scores  of  other  young  people,  who 
were  strangers  to  real  piety,  were  now  struck  with  the  live- 
ly demonstrations  of  hell,  evidently  set  forth  before  their 
eyes  when  they  saw  persons  cruelly  frighted,  wounded  and 
starved  by  devils,  and  scalded  with  burning  brimstone  ;  and 


THE    PUBLIC    VERDICT.  105 

yet  so  preserved  in  this  tortured  state,  as  that  at  the  end 
of  one  month's  wretchedness  they  were  able  still  to  under- 
go another ;  so  that  of  these  also  it  might  now  be  said — 
'  Behold  they  pray.'  In  the  whole  the  devil  got  just  no- 
thing ;  but  God  got  praises,  Christ  got  subjects,  the  Holy 
Spirit  got  temples,  the  Church  got  additions,  and  the  souls 
of  men  got  everlasting  benefits.  I  am  not  so  vain,  as  to 
say  that  any  wisdom  or  virtue  of  mine  did  contribute  unto 
this  good  order  of  things  ;  but  I  am  so  just  as  to  say,  I  did 
not  hinder  this  good."* 

Mr.  Upham's  forcible  description  of  the  termination  of 
Mather's  career,  with  the  just  reflections  accompanying  it, 
will  form  a  proper  conclusion  to  a  narrative,  which  in  its 
origin,  its  progress,  and  its  results  should  never  be  for- 
gotten ! 

"  I  cannot  indeed  resist  the  conviction  that,  notwith- 
standing all  his  attempts  to  appear  dissatisfied  after  they 
had  become  unpopular,  with  the  occurrences  in  the  Salem 
trials,  he  looked  upon  them  with  secret  pleasure  ;  and 
would  have  been  glad  to  have  had  them  repeated  again 
in  Boston.  How  blind  is  man  to  the  future  !  The  state  of 
things  which  Cotton  Mather  laboured  to  bring  about,  in 
order  that  he  might  increase  his  own  influence  over  an 
infatuated  people  by  being  regarded  by  them  as  mighty  to 
cast  out  and  vanquish  evil  spirits,  and  as  able  to  hold  Satan 
himself  in  chains  by  his  prayers  and  his  piety,  brought 
him  at  length  into  such  disgrace,  that  his  power  was 
broken  down,  and  he  became  the  object  of  public  ridicule 
and  open  insult.  And  the  excitement  that  had  been  pro- 
duced for  the  purpose  of  restoring  and  strengthening  the 
influence  of  the  clerical  and  spiritual  leaders,  resulted  in 
effects  which  reduced  that  influence  to  a  still  lower  point. 
The  intimate  connexion  of  Dr.  Mather  and  other  prominent 

*  Mather's  Works. 


106  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

ministers  with  the  witchcraft  delusion  brought  a  reproach 
upon  the  clergy  from  which  they  have  never  yet  recov- 
ered. 

"  In  addition  to  the  designing  exertions  of  ambitious 
ecclesiastics,  and  the  benevolent  and  praiseworthy  efforts 
of  those  whose  only  aim  was  to  promote  a  real  and 
thorough  reformation  of  religion,  all  the  passions  of  our 
nature  stood  ready  to  throw  their  concentrated  energy  into 
the  excitement  (as  they  ever  will  do  whatever  may  be  its 
character)  so  soon  as  it  became  sufficiently  strong  to  encour- 
age their  action. 

"  The  whole  force  of  popular  superstition — all  the  fanat- 
ical propensities  of  the  ignorant  and  deluded  multitude 
united  with  the  best  feelings  of  our  nature  to  heighten  the 
fury  of  the  storm.  Piety  was  indignant  at  the  supposed 
rebellion  against  the  sovereignty  of  God,  and  was  roused  to 
an  extreme  of  agitation  and  apprehension  in  witnessing 
such  a  daring  and  fierce  assault  by  the  devil  and  his  adhe- 
rents upon  the  churches  and  the  cause  of  the  gospel. 
Virtue  was  shocked  at  the  tremendous  guilt  of  those  who 
were  believed  to  have  entered  the  diabolical  confederacy ; 
while  public  order  and  security  stood  aghast,  amidst  the 
invisible,  the  supernatural,  the  infernal,  and  apparently  the 
irresistible  attacks  that  were  making  upon  the  foundations 
of  society,  in  baleful  combination  with  principles,  good  in 
themselves,  thus  urging  the  passions  into  wild  operation, 
there  were  all  the  wicked  and  violent  affections  to  which 
humanity  is  liable.  Theological  bitterness,  personal  ani- 
mosities, local  controversies,  private  feuds,  long  cherished 
grudges,  and  professional  jealousies,  rushed  forward,  and 
raised  their  discordant  voices,  to  swell  the  horrible  din  ; 
credulity  rose  with  its  monstrous  and  ever  expanding  form, 
on  the  ruins  of  truth,  reason  and  the  senses  ;  malignity  and 


upham's  reflections.  107 

cruelty  rode  triumphantly  through  the  storm,  by  whose  fury 
every  mild  and  gentle  sentiment  had  been  shipwrecked  ; 
and  revenge  smiling  in  the  midst  of  the  tempest,  welcomed 
its  desolating  wrath  as  it  dashed  the  mangled  objects  of 
its  hate  along  the  shore  " 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

WITCHCRAFT    DELUSION    IN    ENGLAND. 

It  is  only  just  to  mention  that  during  the  seventeenth 
century  there  were  numerous  executions  for  witchcraft  in 
England,  and  a  much  larger  number  in  Scotland,  besides 
other  parts  of  Europe,  though  most  persons  were  opposed 
to  this  severity.  The  law  authorising  it  was  first  placed  on 
the  statue  book  by  James  the  First's  parliament  to  please 
that  superstitious  monarch,  whose  partiality  for  the  study 
of  demonology  is  well  known.  It  is  worthy  of  note  that 
the  most  ultra  protestants  went  the  greatest  lengths  in 
these  delusions  ;  which  has  drawn  from  a  French  Roman 
Catholic  critic  the  following  caustic  and  truthful  censure — 
"  So  great  folly  did  then  oppress  the  miserable  world,  that 
Christians  believed  greater  absurdities  than  could  be  im- 
posed upon  the  heathens."  Thus  the  number  of  victims 
were  comparatively  small  in  England  to  those  who  suffered 
in  Scotland,  Sweden,  etc. — and  in  our  own  country  the 
work  was  principally  encouraged  by  the  non-conformists. 
One  signal  proof,  amongst  others,  of  this  is  afforded  in  the 
case  of  Matthew  Hopkins,  who,  during  the  Great  Rebellion 
travelled  through  the  eastern  counties  in  search  of  witches. 
His  expenses  were  paid,  and  a  fee  was  given  for  each  dis- 
covery. His  mode  of  detection  was  peculiar. — "  Besides 
pricking  the  body  to  find  the  witch  mark,  he  compelled  the 
wretched  and  decrepid  victims  of  his  cruel  practices  to  sit 
in  a  painful  posture  upon  an  elevated  stool,  with  their  limbs 
crossed,  and  if  they  persevered  in  refusing  to  confess  he 


PURITAN    CRUELTIES.  109 

would  prolong  their  torture  in  some  cases  to  more  than 
twenty-four  hours  ;  he  would  prevent  them  from  going  to 
sleep,  and  drag  them  about  barefoot  over  the  rough  ground, 
thus  overcoming  them  with  extreme  weariness  and  pain  ; 
but  his  favourite  method  was  to  tie  the  thumb  of  the  right 
hand  close  to  the  great  toe  of  the  left  foot,  and  draw  them 
through  a  river  or  pond  ;  if  they  floated,  as  they  would  be 
likely  to  do  while  their  heavier  limbs  were  thus  sustained 
and  upborne  by  the  rope,  it  was  considered  as  conclusive 
proof  of  their  guilt." 

Such  sagaciousness  was  doubtless  worthy  the  agency  of 
the  puritanical  faction  whose  reign  had  then  commenced. 
Hopkins  was  sanctioned  by  the  parliament  and  stimulated 
in  his  career  of  murder  by  Richard  Baxter  and  some  of  his 
colleagues.     Hudibras  thus  memorializes  his  exploits  : — 

"  Hath  not  this  present  Parliament 
A  leiger  to  the  Devil  sent, 
Fully  empowered  to  treat  about 
Finding  revolted  witches  out  1 
And  has  he  not  within  a  year 
Hanged  three-score  of  them  in  one  shire  V 

The  career  of  this  "  witch  finder"  was  suddenly  termi- 
nated by  some  gentleman  who  employed  his  mode  of  de- 
tection on  himself.  They  tied  his  thumbs  and  toes  to- 
gether, and  dragged  him  about  in  a  horse  pond,  when  as  he 
did  not  sink  he  was  convicted  by  his  own  test.  This  put  a 
stop  for  a  time  to  the  work  of  death  and  outrage  ;  not  how- 
ever till  upwards  of  sixty-four  had  fallen  through  his 
means. 

One  of  his  victims  was  an  aged  clergyman  named  Lewis, 
who  had  been  the  exemplary  minister  of  a  parish  for  more 
than  half  a  century.  "  His  infirm  frame  was  subjected  to 
the  several  tests,  and  even  to  the  trial  by  water  ordeal ;  he 
was  compelled  to  walk  almost  incessantly  for  several  days 


110  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

and  nights,  until,  in  the  exhaustion  of  his  nature  he  was 
made  to  assent  to  a  confession  that  was  adduced  against 
him  in  court ;  which  however  he  disowned,  and  denied 
there  and  at  all  times  from  the  moment  he  was  released 
from  the  torments  by  which  it  was  extorted  from  him,  to 
the  moment  of  his  death  !  As  he  was  about  to  die  the 
death  of  a  felon,  he  knew  that  the  rites  of  sepulture  ac- 
cording to  the  forms  of  his  denomination  would  be  denied 
to  his  remains.  The  aged  sufferer,  it  is  related,  read  his 
own  funeral  service  while  on  the  scaffold.  Solemn,  sub- 
lime and  affecting  as  is  this  most  admirable  portion  of  the 
excellent  ritual  of  the  Church,  surely  it  was  never  per- 
formed under  circumstances  so  well  suited  to  impress  with 
awe  and  tenderness,  as  when  uttered  by  the  calumniated, 
oppressed  and  dying  old  man."* 

The  circumstances  of  his  death,  so  calculated  to  stir  up 
all  the  tenderest  sympathies  of  those  filling  the  same  sa- 
cred office,  only  called  forth  the  sneers  and  ridicule  of  the 
anti-prelatist  Baxter,  who  gave  him  in  derision  the  title  of 
"  the  reading  parson."  So  completely  does  sectarian  hatred 
extinguish  all  the  kindlier  feelings  of  our  nature  when 
once  it  takes  undivided  possession  of  the  soul. 

The  cases  of  two  women  tried  and  convicted  at  Bury 
St.  Edmunds  before  Sir  Matthew  Hale,  who  sentenced 
them  to  death,  has  frequently  been  mentioned  in  dispar- 
agement of  that  great  and  virtuous  judge.  But  let  it  al- 
ways be  borne  in  mind,  that  he  was  governed  in  his  opin- 
ion by  that  of  Sir  Thomas  Brown,  a  man  whose  position 
and  celebrity  as  a  scholar  were  unequalled  in  his  age.  It 
is  the  testimony  of  a  reporter  of  the  trial  that  "  it  made 
this  great  and  good  man  [Hale]  doubtful,  but  he  was  in 
such  fears,  and  proceeded  with  such  caution  that  he  would 
not  so  much  as  sum  up  the  evidence,  but  left  it  to  the  jury 
*  History  of  Witchcraft,  p.  173. 


ARCHBISHOP    HARSNET.  Ill 

with  prayers  '  that  the  great  God  of  heaven  would  direct 
their  hearts  in  that  weighty  matter.'  " 

The  credit  of  putting  an  end  to  the  witchcraft  delusion 
in  England  belongs  peculiarly  to  Archbishop  Harsnet,  who 
was  raised  to  the  see  of  York  by  Charles  I.  in  1C28.  He 
exerted  himself  to  bring  the  charges  of  the  puritan  "  witch 
finders"  into  contempt  and  discredit,  which  his  wit  event- 
ually did  much  to  accomplish.  The  following  is  one  of 
his  descriptions  in  stating  the  real  motives  and  discovering 
the  method  of  the  cheating  impostors : 

"  Out  of  these  is  shaped  to  us  the  true  idea  of  a  witch  : 
An  old  weather-beaten  crone,  having  her  chin  and  her 
knees  meeting  for  age,  walking  like  a  bow,  leaning  on  a 
staff;  hollow-eyed,  untoothed,  furrowed  on  her  face,  having 
her  limbs  trembling  with  the  palsy,  going  mumbling  in  the 
streets ;  one  that  hath  forgotten  her  pater  noster,  and  yet 
hath  a  shrewd  tongue  to  call  a  drab,  '  a  drab.'  If  she 
hath  learned  of  an  old  wife  in  a  chimney  end  Pax,  Max, 
Fax,  for  a  spell,  or  can  say  Sir  John  Grantham's  curse  for 
the  miller's  eels  ["  All  ye  that  have  stolen  the  miller's  eels, 
Laudate  domimtm  de  calls;  and  all  they  that  have  con- 
sented thereto  Benedicmnns  domino"]  why  then  beware  ! 
look  about  you,  my  neighbours  !  If  any  of  you  have  a 
sheep  sick  of  the  giddies,  or  a  hog  of  the  mumps,  or  a 
horse  of  the  staggers,  or  a  knavish  boy  of  the  school,  or  an 
idle  girl  of  the  wheel,  or  a  young  drab  of  the  sullens,  and 
hath  not  fat  enough  for  her  porrage,  or  butter  enough  for 
her  bread,  and  she  hath  a  little  help  of  the  epilepsy  or 
cramp,  to  teach  her  to  roll  her  eyes,  wry  her  mouth,  gnash 
her  teeth,  startle  with  her  body,  hold  her  arms  and  hands 
stiff ;  then  when  an  old  Mother  Nobs  hath  by  chance 
called  her  an  "idle  young  housewife,"  or  bid  the  devil 
"  scratch  her,"  no  doubt  but  Mother  Nobs  is  the  witch,  and 
the  young  girl  is  owl  blasted,  etc.     They  that  have  then 


112  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

brains  baited,  and  their  fancies  distempered  with  the  imagi- 
nations and  apprehensions  of  witches,  conjurors,  fairies, 
and  all  that  lymphatic  chimera,  I  find  to  be  marshalled  in 
one  of  these  five  ranks ; — children,  women,  fools,  cowards, 
sick  or  black  melancholic  discomposed  wits." 

All  praise  to  the  honest  Christian  prelate  who  did  not 
shrink  in  an  age  of  fanaticism  and  misrule — England's 
"reign  of  terror" — to  expose  and  denounce  the  arts  and 
miserable  schemes  by  which  the  credulous  multitude  were 
blindfolded ! 


CHAPTER  XIX. 


GENERAL    CONVENTION    OF    1835. 


This  year  the  General  Convention  of  the  American 
Episcopal  Church  was  held  in  Philadelphia,  when  several 
important  measures  were  consummated.  One  of  these  was 
to  change  the  constitution  of  the  Church  Missionary  So- 
ciety which  had  hitherto  been  a  distinct  voluntary  associa- 
tion by  connecting  it  with  the  Church :  in  other  words — 
the  Church  resolved  itself  into  a  domestic  and  foreign  mis- 
sionary society,  every  communicant  of  it  to  be  a  member 
of  the  same,  and  the  bishops  ex-officio  its  governors  etc. 
This  step  has  resulted  in  the  most  signal  success !  There 
are  now  in  the  pay  of  the  society  seventy  domestic,  and 


rteeen  foreign  missi 

onaries  distributed 

as  follows 

:— 

Maine    . 

4 

Kentucky  . 

9 

New  Hampshire 

2 

Ohio  . 

7 

Delaware 

6 

Indiana 

14 

North  Carolina 

1 

Illinois 

14 

Georgia 

3 

Michigan 

15 

Florida  . 

.      5 

Wisconsin 

8 

Alabama 

.      5 

Iowa  . 

3 

Mississippi 

.      5 

Missouri 

1 

Louisiana 

2 

Arkansas 

3 

Tennessee 

3 

Indian  Miss 

ions 

2 

These  70  missionaries  supply  127  stations,  the  seeds  of 
future   parishes.     Their   remuneration   is,    however,    very 


114  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

small,  varying  from  50  to  500  dollars,  proportioned  to  the 
amount  raised  by  the  people,  which  seldom  goes  towards 
the  missionary  salary  till  a  church  building  is  erected  and 
paid  for,  during  which  time  he  is  with  few  exceptions 
wholly  dependant  on  the  missionary  stipend.  These  "  mis- 
sionaries," it  will  be  remembered,  are  besides  the  independ- 
ant  parochial  clergy  of  the  country,  and  are  fully  under  the 
bishop's  jurisdiction  in  whose  diocese  they  are  located. 

Of  the  foreign  missionaries  five  are  stationed  in  Western 
Africa,  with  fourteen  catechists,  ladies,  &c. ;  three  besides 
Bishop  Boone  in  China ;  two  in  Greece ;  two  besides 
Bishop  Southgate  in  the  dominions  of  the  Sultan  ;  and 
three  in  Texas  [now  a  part  of  the  U.  S.]  besides  Bishop 
Freeman.  These  clergymen  are  assisted  by  catechists, 
female  teachers,  &c. 

Bishop  Chase  having  resigned,  with  the  presidency  of 
Kenyon  College,  which  had  been  founded  by  his  remark- 
able exertions,  the  episcopate  of  Ohio,  and  having  been 
elected  bishop  of  the  newly-formed  diocess  of  Illinois,  the 
latter  was  "received  and  acknowledged  as  a  diocess  in 
union  with  the  General  Convention."  Dr.  Hawks  was  also 
appointed  by  the  house  of  bishops  missionary  bishop  to  the 
South  West,  and  Dr.  Kember  to  the  North  West  territory.* 
Dr.  Hawks  declined  the  appointment,  which  was  assigned 
at  the  last  convention  (in  1844)  to  Dr.  Freeman  of 
Delaware. 

This  was  the  last  convocation  in  which  the  aged  patriarch 
White  presided,  after  directing  its  deliberations  in  that 
character  for  forty  years.!     This  venerable  man  is  I  pre- 

*  A  "  Territory"  is  one  of  those  large  sections  of  country  not  yet  subdivided, 
(and  organized)  into  "  States."  e.  g.  Oregon,  called  (I  suppose  facetiously)  in 
the  English  papers,  "  The  Oregon"  is  a  "  Territory." 

t  Since  1795  the  office  of  presiding  bishop  (as  established  at  the  first  Con- 
vention of  the  united  Church  in  1789)  is  held  by  seniority  of  consecration. 


GENERAL    CONVENTION    OF    1835.  115 

sume  known  to  every  English  reader,  as  one  of  the  prin- 
cipal agents  in  the  hands  of  Providence  in  founding  and 
establishing  the  American  Church,  of  which  he  was  a  most 
distinguished  ornament. 

Connected  with  Bishop  Chase's  resignation  of  the  diocess 
of  Ohio,  in  which  he  was  one  of  the  first  ?nissio?iarics, 
and  on  whose  soil  he  had  reared  up  for  its  sons  a  noble 
institution  of  learning  which  will  doubtless  stand  many 
centuries  an  enduring  monument  to  his  zeal  and  quench- 
less love  for  the  Church  of  his  land  and  the  best  interests  of 
her  children,  there  were  several  circumstances  of  a  very 
painful  character  ;  which  the  good  bishop  made  the  sub- 
ject of  strong  complaint.  They  will  be  found  fully  detailed, 
with  all  the  documentary  facts  bearing   on  them,  in  his 


Bishop  White's  predecessors  were  Seabury  and  Provoost.  The  first  held  the 
office  till  the  convention  of  1792,  when  the  rule  was  changed  to  one  of  rotation, 
beginning  north,  which  gave  it  to  Bishop  Provoost  who  presided  at  that  con- 
vention, and  at  the  episcopal  consecrations  following,  till  1795,  when  the  same 
rule  placed  Bishop  White  in  the  presidential  chair  though  against  his  own 
avowed,  (and  recorded)  judgment.     The  following  year  Bishop  Seabury  died. 

At  the  first  Convention  of  the  Church  (that  of  1789)  at  which  Bishop  Sea- 
bury presided,  the  Constitution  of  the  American  Church  was  established  the 
Convention  regularly  organized  in  two  houses,  and  the  Liturgy  as  now  used 
was  compiled.  To  his  firmness  and  excellent  judgment  the  Church  is  in- 
debted for  the  slight  departure  made  from  the  English  ordinal  the  addition  to 
the  communion  office  of  the  Scotch  form  of  consecrating  the  elements  (similar 
to  the  Greek,  and  other  ancient  forms)  and  numerous  other  conservative  prin- 
ciples embodied  in  the  ritual  and  canons.  Bishop  Provoost  resigned  the  epis- 
copate of  New  York  in  1801,  when  the  first  (good)  rule— succession  by  seniority 
of  consecration, — became  again  established,  and  still  continues.  Under  this 
rule,  as  well  as  the  other,  Bishop  Provoost  had  title  of  precedency  to  Bishop 
White,  having  been,  on  account  of  seniority  in  years  and  in  the  ministry,  first 
consecrated  at  Lambeth  in  1787.  The  former  died  September  6, 1815.  Bishop 
White  died  July  17,  1836,  in  the  89th  year  of  his  age,  the  66th  of  his  ministry, 
and  the  50th  of  his  episcopate.  By  his  death  Bishop  Griswold  succeeded  to  the 
highest  ecclesiastical  post,  which  he  left  Februrary  15th,  1843  in  the  hands  of 
the  present  occupant,  Bishop  Chase. 


116        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

"  Reminiscences,"  republishing  in  London,  and  are  well 
worthy  of  the  English  reader's  attentive  consideration,  as 
illustrating  the  practical  effects  of  the  democratic  principle 
when  carried  into  schools  of  learning.  The  whole  history 
of  the  proceeding  may  be  summed  up  in  a  few  words  : — 
The  system  of  college  government  and  discipline  which 
Bishop  Chase  introduced,  and  his  firm  though  mild  ad- 
ministration of  Kenyon,  together  with  his  (English  framed) 
regulations  for  the  rule  of  the  professors,  drew  upon  him 
from  the  subordinates  of  the  establishment  the  charge  of  an 
arbitrary  exercise  of  power,  and  the  pupils  were  most  im- 
properly excited  to  rebellion,  and  arrayed  by  their  tutors 
against  the  venerable  president.  "  Any  one,"  remarks  the 
narrator,  "acquainted  with  human  nature,  and  the  influ- 
ence of  instructors  over  the  minds  of  their  pupils,  may 
easily  suppose  they  could  not  fail  to  be  successful.  In  this 
respect  perhaps,  the  world  never  witnessed  a  more  com- 
plete ascendency  of  designing  men  on  the  minds  of  unsus- 
pecting youth.  At  length  there  appeared  great  boldness  on 
the  part  of  the  teachers  against  the  bishop.  They  found 
fault  with  him  for  almost  every  thing.  The  magnitude  of 
Rosse  Chapel  was  made  the  subject  of  great  censure  among 
the  professors.  "  The  compartment  for  the  chancel,"  they 
said,  "  was  too  large — too  much  in  the  style  of  the  English 
cathedrals,"  and  then  it  was  to  be  under  the  rectoral  power 
of  the  bishop.  One  of  them  went  so  far  as  to  tell  the 
bishop  that  "  this  chapel  was  the  cause  of  all  his  troubles." 
He  was  amazed  at  this  observation,  till  then  not  knowing 
that  any  had  complained  of  him  on  this  score.  At  length 
the  conduct  of  the  professors  and  teachers  became  very  dis- 
respectful ;  they  wrote  him  insulting  notes  ;  and  to  close 
all,  they  addressed  him  jointly  in  a  most  unbecoming  let- 
ter, written  in  very  bad  taste,  accusing  him  of  "  exercising 
arbitrary    power,"   and  signed    the  same,  not   with   their 


KENYON    COLLEGE    TROUBLES.  117 

individual  names,  but  with  these  words,  "  The  Professors  of 
Kenyon  College,"  and  published  it  to  the  world. 

It  may  be  well  conceived  that  this  was  a  heavy  blow  to 
the  generous-hearted  prelate ;  whose  single  and  unaided 
exertions  had,  after  a  long  trial  of  perseverance,  untold 
labours,  and  heavy  pecuniary  sacrifice,  first  planted  the 
college,*  to  which  the  last  six  years  of  his  life  had  been 
unceasingly  devoted  ;  and  to  whom  these  very  professors 
were  indebted  for  their  seats.  But  the  circumstances  at- 
tending the  sequel,  make  yet  a  stronger  claim  on  the  sym- 
pathies of  every  generous  reader.  The  bishop  was  shortly 
to  meet  his  convention  when  this  accusation  was  brought 
against  him,  and  made  it  the  subject  matter  of  his  episco- 
pal address  as  head  of  the  diocess.  On  the  day  before  the 
meeting  of  this  convention  the  bishop  in  the  act  of  crossing 
the  timbers  of  the  unfinished  college  chapel,  met  with  a 
severe  aecident,  in  falling  between  the  joists,  which  tem- 
porally maimed  him,  and  under  the  agony  of  which  he 
was  suffering  during  the  delivery  of  the  address,  which  in 
simple  and  touching  language  told  the  history  of  his  college 
trials,  and  exhibited  a  defence  of  every  step  of  his  presiden- 
tial course  by  an  appeal  to  the  constitution  and  laws ; 
dwelling  particularly  on  the  compact  between  the  donors 
and  the  trustees,  which  he  had  showed  that  he  had  scru- 
pulously adhered  to,  and  which  it  was  the  aim  of  the  pro- 
fessors to  set  aside !  The  bishop  firmly  opposed  the  de- 
mand of  the  teachers  to  "  make  and  administer  laws,  by  a 
majority  of  voices"  in  opposition  to  his  constitional  right, 
which  he  was  bound  to  maintain. 

*  Bishop  Chase  commenced  his  undertaking  with  £6000,  which  he  collected 
in  England,  Lords  Kenyon  and  Gambier  being  the  principal  contributors ;  with 
which,  and  the  money  raised  in  America,  he  purchased  eight  thousand  acres 
of  land,  and  commenced  the  walls.  The  first  College  is  named  "  Kenyon,"  and 
the  village  "Gambier:"  the  chapel  "  Rosse"  after  the  Countess  Dowager,  a 
benefactress. 


118  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

"  I  have  not  words,"  concluded  the  bishop,  "  to  express 
my  astonishment  at  the  rash  act  of  these  gentlemen.  It  is 
not  the  uncourteous  style,  and  the  instances  of  bad  taste 
which  it  exhibits  in  addressing  me,  their  father  and  friend, 
as  I  feel  myself  to  be ;  no  !  it  is  the  dreadful  consequences 
which,  I  fear,  are  but  too  likely  to  follow  this  unexampled 
deed,  that  causes  me  to  mourn  sincerely. 

"  The  peace  of  God's  Church,  the  peace  and  honour  of 
our  own  communion,  and  the  prosperity  of  our  College, 
Oh !  where  are  they  ?  Where  are  they  not,  if  found  oh  the 
face  of  such  a  letter  as  this. 

"Yet  it  has  gone  to  the  world,  and,  at  this  moment,  is 
doing  its  dreadful  work  of  destruction  to  our  Seminary. 
'  Oh  !  tell  it  not  in  Gath,  publish  it  not  in  the  streets  of 
Askelon  !  Lest  the  daughters  of  Philistia  rejoice,  lest  the 
enemies  of  my  people  triumph.' " 

The  bishop's  narrative  states  that  during  the  delivery  of 
his  address  "  the  wounded  limb  became  so  painful  that  he 
was  obliged,  immediately  on  its  close,  to  leave  the  chair  to 
the  senior  presbyter,  the  Rev.  Samuel  Johnston,  and  retire 
to  his  residence  in  the  college.  This  being  the  distance  of 
a  quarter  of  a  mile,  his  walking  thither  had  well  nigh 
caused  him  to  faint.  Mingled  with  his  bodily  pain  was 
that  of  his  mind,  for  he  had  seen  enough,  even  in  this  short 
visit  he  had  paid  his  Convention,  to  convince  him  that  the 
leading  men  were  one  with  the  conspirators,  and  had  come 
prepared  to  aid  them  '  in  putting  down  the  bishop.' 

"The  writer  was  detained  for  forty-eight  hours  by  the 
extreme  pain  of  his  wounded  leg,  ere  he  could  think  of 
meeting  the  Convention  again.  In  that  time  much  had 
been  done  in  their  own  way,  both  with  tools  without  and 
within  doors.  Both  the  teachers  and  the  unsuspecting 
scholars  had  been  afresh  invited  by  '  the  spirit  of  the  age ' 
to  '  resist  and  put  down  authority.'     The  spectators  at  the 


KENYON    COLLEGE    TROUBLES.  119 

meetings  of  the  Convention,  seeing  what  was  going  on 
there,  were  well  prepared  to  show  disrespect  to  their  bishop, 
as  he  walked  unattended  thither  again.  As  he  crept  along, 
every  tiling  seemed  to  wear  the  saddest  aspect.  Scarcely 
a  living  object  passed  him  without  some  signs  of  disrespect. 
Even  the  smallest  grammar  school  boys,  in  obedience  to 
the  example  and  faithful  training  of  the  professors  and 
teachers,  had  learned  to  cry  out,  '  it  was  too  much  power  to 
commit  to  the  hands  of  one  man  ;'  and  the  little  guns  they 
were  allowed  by  the  teachers  to  load  with  powder,  were 
fired  with  shouts  of  independence  of  episcopal  tyranny. 
The  very  clerk  in  the  college  store  had  been  won  over  to 
the  cause,  and  was  heard  often  to  boast  of  his  belonging  to 
the  Anti-Bishop  Party.''  "* 

The  bishop's  worst  suspicions  were  confirmed  !  On  the 
ninth  day  of  the  session  he  took  his  seat  in  the  chair,  and 
heard  the  report  of  "  a  committee  to  whom  had  been  re- 
ferred so  much  of  his  address  as  related  to  the  difficulties 
of  Kenyon  College  ;"  in  which  "  Report"  the  committee 
took  sides  with  the  faculty.  The  apostolic  man  made  no 
response — he  silently  allowed  the  usual  business  to  proceed, 
— and,  at  the  stated  time  for  divine  service,  he  took  his 
way  unattended  to  the  temporary  chapel  (a  school  house) 
"  lingering  necessarily"  as  the  account  describes  "  by  reason 
of  his  lameness.  It  was  a  fine  day  in  the  first  part  of 
September  ;  the  elevated  part  in  which  he  walked  gave 
him  that  view  of  the  grounds  all  around  for  which  the 
place  is  so  much  admired.  Halting  for  a  few  moments, 
with  no  arm  to  lean  on  but  that  of  a  pitying  God,  who  had 
supported  him  in  all  his  trials,  he  gathered  strength  and 
composure  to  think  calmly  of  the  past,  to  contemplate  the 
present,  and  anticipate  the  future  ;  in  doing  which,  never 
did  his  breast  feel  such  an  assemblage  of  mingled  emotions. 
*  Reminiscences,  p.  742. 


120        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

He  remembered  how,  led  by  the  hand  of  Providence,  he 
had  descried  this  '  goodly  land  f  how,  in  laying  it  out  into 
fit  portions  for  the  great  porposes  in  view,  he  had  for  some 
months  together  reposed  in  a  hut  without  a  floor,  with  a 
billet  of  wood  only  for  his  pillow.  He  called  to  mind  the 
sleepless  nights  and  the  toilsome  days  spent,  the  one  in 
anxious  thoughts,  the  other,  fatiguing  labour. 

"  He  contrasted  the  past  with  the  present,  and  none  can 
describe  the  emotions  created  in  his  bosom  when  he  listen- 
ed to  the  voice  of  duty  compelling  him  to  leave  all  in  the 
hands  of  unjust  accusers  and  a  misguided  diocess  ;  the  for- 
mer governed  by  an  unworthy  jealousy  and  mean  selfish- 
ness, and  the  latter  blinded  by  intrigue,  and  rushing  on  in 
a  course  of  measures  which  he  could  plainly  see  (if  not  ar- 
rested by  a  merciful  Providence)  would  end  in  the  utter  ruin 
of  the  institution.  He  could  not  be  a  partaker  with  them 
in  this  work  of  injustice  and  destruction  !  He  could  not 
with  his  own  hand  sign  his  own  death-warrant,  nor  legal- 
ize by  his  continuance  in  office,  an  interruption  of  the  con- 
stitution of  the  Seminary  directly  contrary  to  the  intention 
of  the  founders.  He  must  surrender  what  he  could  not  re- 
tain, either  in  honour,  justice,  or  peace.  He  attended 
chapel,  and  heard  the  sermon  preached  by  Mr.  Ethan  Al- 
len— went  home,  and  wrote  the  form  of  resignation  which 
follows : 

"  RESIGNATION. 

"  To  the  Clergy  and  Laity  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  of  the  Diocess  of  Ohio,  assembled  in  convention 
in  Gambier,  on  this  the  9th  day  of  Sept.,  1831. 

"  Brethren — We  have  heard  this  day  a  sermon 
preached  by  the  Rev.  Ethan  Allen  from  God's  word,  which 


KENYON    COLLEGE    TROUBLES.  121 

I  desire  him  to  publish, — that  we  must  live  in  peace,  or  we 
cannot  be  christians  ;  and  that  to  secure  peace,  especially 
that  of  God's  Church,  great  sacrifices  must  sometimes  be 
made.  Influenced  by  these  principles,  I  am  willing,  in  or- 
der to  secure  the  peace  of  God's  Church  and  that  of  our 
beloved  Seminary,  in  addition  to  the  sacrifices  which,  by 
the  grace  of  God,  have  been  already  made,  to  resign ;  and 
I  do  hereby  resign  the  Episcopate  of  this  Uiocess,  and  with 
it  what  I  consider  constitutionally  identified,  the  Presidency 
of  the  Theological  Seminary  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  of  the  Diocess  of  Ohio. 

"  The  Convention  will  make  this  known  to  the  Trustees, 
whom  I  am  no  longer  to  meet  in  my  official  capacity. 

"  Philander  Chase." 

The  resignation  was  accepted,  and  the  convention,  on 
the  same  day  elected  the  Rev.  Charles  P.  M.  Ilvaine  to  fill 
the  vacancy.  Thus  was  suddenly  and  unexpectedly  sev- 
ered a  connection  which  had  existed  for  twelve  years.  In 
language  not  egotistical,  the  bishop  whose  services  were 
thus  in  a  moment  forgotten,  when  '-liberty"  (that  blas- 
phemed word)  and  "  release  from  episcopal  restraint"  were 
the  objects  in  pursuit  "  had  organized  almost  every  parish 
in  the  diocess,  had  baptized  the  young,  and  confirmed  the 
middle-aged,  and  administered  the  bread  of  life  to  all.  He 
had  befriended  all  the  parishes  as  they  were  brought  into 
being,  and  to  his  remembrance  never  had  passed  a  harsh 
word  or  look  with  any  of  the  parochial  clergy  ;  so  that,  if 
they  were  sincere  in  following  the  deceptive  persuasions  of 
the  college  professors,  they  could  not  be  blind  to  these  facts, 
engraven  on  the  tablets  of  their  memories.  They  might 
truly  say,  "  Here  is  our  bishop,  who  has  never  intentionally 
done  us  any  harm,  but,  on  the  contrary,  always  endeav- 
oured to  do  us  good.     He  came  over  the  high  hills,  and 


122  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

sought  us,  when  there  was  but  little  or  no  care  for  us  in 
the  bosom  of  all  the  Church  beside.  He  gathered  us  to- 
gether as  a  diocess,  the  first  of  primitive  order  and  truth  in 
the  western  country,  and  ever  since  has  presided  over  us 
without  reproach.  Here  he  now  is,  our  shepherd  and 
friend  ;  and  to  add  to  these  most  interesting  relationships, 
he  is  also  the  founder,  under  God,  of  a  great  institution — 
of  a  Theological  Seminary  surnamed  Kenyon  College, 
which  he  is  now  building  up  on  Gambier  Hill,  names  most 
beloved,  because  they  are  those  of  his  personal  friends  in 
our  mother  land,  who  gave  him  the  means  to  do  this.  (If 
they  did  not,  who  did  ?  surely  we  did  not.)  Thus,  by  his 
hand,  was  this  great  tree  planted,  and  watered  with  foreign 
dews — under  whose  shadow  we  are  now  sitting,  and  eating 
the  fruit  thereof,  without  being  required  to  bring  the  smallest 
offering  as  a  token  of  our  gratitude  to  a  heavenly  Saviour 
for  such  favours,  or  as  a  pledge  of  our  duty  to  support  his 
minister,  our  bishop,  who  is  ever  glad  to  see  us,  ungrateful 
as  we  have  proved  ourselves.  Here  he  is  happy  to  minister 
to  us  as  a  servant  to  his  master,  because  he  thinks  we  be- 
long to  Christ.  When  we  come  hither,  the  servants  of  the 
institution  wait  upon  us.  Our  tables  are  supplied  by  his 
orders,  and  our  pillows  are  smoothed  by  his  command — at 
his,  not  our  own  cost.  All  this  without  one  word  of  up- 
braiding language  ;  no,  neither  for  innumerable  kindnesses 
which  he  is  shewing  unto  us,  nor  for  the  injuries  which  we 
are  doing  unto  him,  by  caballing  with  his  enemies.  And 
while  he  is  thus  doing  right  and  suffering  wrong,  he 
maintains  his  own  principles  with  sincerity  and  firmness  ; 
and,  what  is  still  more,  for  the  sake  of  peace  he  waives  all 
pride  of  contest,  and  offers  to  appeal  to  the  only  earthly 
tribunal  left — the  heads  of  our  diocesses,  as  a  Constitutional 
Committee  of  Reference  of  difficulties  between  the  seminary 
and  him.     To  this  appeal  we  refuse  to  lend  a  listening 


KENYON    COLLEGE    TROUBLES.  123 

ear !  !  We  turn  from  him,  as  we  did  just  now  when  he  ap- 
pealed to  us  for  trial  and  justice  against  his  accusers  ;  and, 
what  is  still  more  strange,  and  un-heard  of  before  in  a 
Christian   land  those   very  accusers  of  our   bishop 

ARE  PERMITTED  TO  SIT  IN  THE  BODY  OF  THIS  CON- 
VENTION, all  this  while  of  trouble,  and  not  only  to  give  a 

SILENT  VOTE  AGAINST  HIM,  but  TO  INVENT,  AND  SET 
IN  ORDER,  AND  MANAGE,  ALL  THE  PLANS  AND  APPOINT- 
MENTS OF  ALL  THE  COMMITTEES  BY  WHICH  HE  IS  TO 
BE    RUINED." 

There  are  several  circumstances  of  an  aggravated  nature 
connected  with  the  act  of  the  Ohio  clergy  in  this  unkindly 
separation  with  their  spiritual  father.  One  was  that  nearly 
all  had  received  their  ministerial  commission  from  him  ! 
"  To  the  laity"  also  the  bishop  writes  "  I  might  appeal  with 
Samuel :  Whom  have  I  defrauded  ? — whom  have  I  op- 
pressed ?  Yea,  I  have  withheld  from  them  a  just  mainte- 
nance "  seeking  not  theirs,  but  them — not  the  fleece  but  the 
flock." 

The  prospect — so  painful  to  a  man  whose  whole  soul 
had  been  long  concentrated  in  a  design,  every  part  of  which 
had,  in  turn,  occupied  his  waking  and  sleeping  hours — of  a 
general  and  total  alteration  of  his  plans,  down  to  the  detail 
of  the  building  operations  was  not  either  a  trifling  griev- 
ance. The  English  lover  of  taste  in  architectural  embel- 
lishment, and  the  properties  of  college  accomodations,  will 
be  prepared  to  sympathize  with  the  good  bishop  in  one  part 
of  his  trial  in  a  larger  degree,  perhaps,  than  he  received 
sympathy  amongst  his  countrymen,  whose  (mistaken)  utili- 
tarian notions  would  obscure  their  judgment  in  reading  this 
part  of  his  plaint : — 

"  Jn  a  great  and  permanent  institution,  it  is  necessary 
that  there  be  a  consistent  design  ;  and  not  only  that  the 
advantages  of  nature  be  tastefully  used,  but  that  the  whole 


124  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

plan  speak  the  character  of  the  institution.  This  had  been 
the  endeavour  of  the  founder  of  the  Theological  Seminary. 
The  grounds  had  been  selected  with  this  view — the  position 
of  the  main  building  had  been  chosen  for  this  end.  Its 
material  was  of  the  most  durable  kind,  (stone,)  put  up  in 
the  substantial  manner,  in  semi-Gothic  style  of  architec- 
ture, as  most  suitable  for  an  episcopal  seminary,  or  college. 
Fronting  this,  and  at  proper  distances,  but  without  obstruct- 
ing the  view,  it  was  intended  to  erect  two  professors'  houses 
of  like  material.  One  of  these  was  commenced, — the  part, 
erected  being  intended  to  be  the  wing  of  a  larger  building. 
But  scarcely  had  the  Convention  risen,  before  preparations 
began  for  putting  up  on  the  opposite  side  a  professor's 
house,  of  brick, — thus  at  once  destroying  the  unity  of  the 
plan.  [Barbarians !]  That  this  work  might  proceed  more 
expeditiously,  the  stones  which  had  already  been  hauled, 
dressed,  and  numbered,  for  Rosse  Chapel  were  taken  to 
build  the  cellar  and  foundation  of  this  house. 

"  Even  the  workmen  who  had  assisted  in  preparing  these 
materials  for  the  house  of  God,  refused  their  help  to  turn 
them  to  such  a  purpose;  and  others,  less  scrupulous,  were 
employed. 

"  The  situation,  dimensions,  and  progress  of  Rosse  Chap- 
el, have  been  heretofore  described.  It  was  not  to  be  sup- 
posed that  this  could  escape,  since,  in  the  envious  eye  of 
some,  it  had  been  declared  to  be  the  cause  of  all  the  writer's 
troubles.  It  had  been  planned  and  put  in  progress  by  him ; 
but  those  who  followed  him  were,  it  seems,  very  scrupulous 
about  '  building  on  another  man's  foundation.' 

"In  the  first  place,  its  design  was  Gothic:  as  that  sa- 
voured too  much  of  episcopacy,  it  was  changed  into  the 
Grecian  order,  with  pillars  in  front.  Again,  its  size  was 
large,  and  would  occasion  too  much  expense ;  therefore  the 
chancel  (another  episcopal  appendage)  must  be  cut  off, — 


KENYON    COLLEGE    TROUBLES.  125 

though  double  the  sum  necessary  to  continue  that  be  ex- 
pended in  excavating  a  basement  story  after  the  walls  had 
been  built  up  solid  to  the  floor,  and  the  sleepers  laid.  The 
Corner  Stone  of  the  building  had  been  deposited  in  the 
chancel  wall,  in  the  name  of  the  Holy  Trinity,  dedicating 
the  house  to  be  erected  thereon  to  the  service  of  the  Lord 
for  ever.  But  this  formed  no  obstacle  in  the  designs  of 
these  men  !  They  were  not  bound  by  forms,  or  tram- 
melled by  superstition.  They  could  dig  up  the  holy  foun- 
dation stone,  and  scatter  its  contents  about,  without  fear  of 
the  punishment  of  sacrilege.  Perhaps  the  documents  it 
contained  were  offensive  to  them,  even  in  their  resting- 
place." 

Though  all  the  friends  of  Kenyon  would  perceive,  and 
take  the  alarm  at  what  follows  : — 

"  Selfishness  now  prevailed  over  great  and  sacred  inter- 
ests. Private  dwellings  of  various  sorts  now  appeared  in 
progress,  instead  of  the  public  buildings  ;  while  the  great 
concerns  of  the  farms,  mills,  stock,  and  merchandise,  were 
given  into  the  hands  of  others,  to  avoid  care. 

"  Under  such  a  state  of  things,  was  it  not  with  reason 
that  the  writer  felt  anxiety  for  the  safety  of  that  institution 
for  which  he  had  laboured  so  long,  and  generous  episcopa- 
lians had  given  so  much  ?— anxiety  lest  its  funds  and  prop- 
erty should  be  spent  and  alienated  before  a  successor  (who, 
it  was  hoped,  would  check  such  a  spirit)  should  arrive. 

"  His  solicitude  was  not  lessened  when  he  heard,  from  his 
retirement,  that,  to  relieve  their  embarrassments,  the  per- 
sons who  had  control  of  affairs,  but  having  no  legal  au- 
thority to  act,  had  offered  the  north  section  for  sale  !"* 

I  am,  however,  getting  a  little  in  advance  of  this  piteous 
history.     Another  aggravating  circumstance  connected  with 
the  forced  withdrawal  of  Bishop  Chase  from  his  diocess 
*  Reminiscences.     The  north  section  is  four  thousand  acres  of  rich  land. 


126  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

and  college,  was  that  the  "  Gambier  Observer,"  which 
from  the  commencement  of  the  persecution  had  been  em- 
ployed to  his  injury, — the  most  effective  instrument  in  the 
hands  of  his  enemies  in  the  work  of  prejudicing  the  minds 
of  the  parochial  clergy,  and  lay  delegation  before  their  at- 
tendance at  the  Convention  which  struck  the  final  fatal 
blow, — and  whose  editor,*  the  bishop  complained,  "ex- 
cluded every  thing  from  its  columns  which  could  benefit 
his  cause,  and  since  his  resignation  had  given  to  the  diocess 
not  one  word  which  could  inform  them  of  the  state  of  pub- 
lic opinion,  excepting  so  far  as  to  publish  whatever  would 
contribute  to  consolidate  the  power  of  his  opponents,"  was 
printed  on  the  Ackland  Press,  presented  by  lady  Ackland 
to  Bishop  Chase,  "  and  has  never  yet"  he  informs  us  "  been 
given  by  him,  or  sold  to  the  seminary  ! !" 

One  is  tempted  to  exclaim,  with  all  due  deference  to 
the  clerical  character  of  the  evangelical  editor — Cest  hi- 
fi  dine  ! 

The  Convention,  however,  was  not  unanimous.  One 
noble  hearted  presbyter,  backed  by  seventeen  of  the  laity, 
took  a  determined  stand  against  the  operation  of  "  spiritual 
wickedness  in  high  places,"  and  left  on  the  journals  of  the 
house  his  protest  against  a  proceeding  of  high  handed  out- 
rage. To  the  resolution  "  that  the  Convention  proceed 
forthwith  to  elect  a  bishop,"  C.  B.  Goddard,  Esq.,  of  Zanes- 
ville  presented  as  an  amendment,  two  resolutions,  one  de- 
claring "  that  the  Trustees  of  the  Seminary  are  the  legisla- 
tive body  thereof,  and  that  the  President  is  the  Executive 
of  the  Institution,  bound  to  carry  into  effect  the  statutes 
&c.  by  them  enacted,  until  the  same  shall  be  reversed  by 
the  General  Convention ;"  and  the  other  "  inviting  Bishop 
Chase  to  revoke  his  resignation,  and  resume  the  duties  of 
the  episcopate."     In  an  eloquent  speech  Mr.  Goddard  pass- 

*  The  Rev.  W.  Sparrow. 


KENYON    COLLEGE    TROUBLES.  127 

ed  a  high,  and  well  merited  eulogium  on  his  hishop,  in 
which  (on  a  reply,  full  of  gall  and  vituperation  from  Dr. 
Aydelotte  of  Cincinnati,  a  prime  mover  in  the  conspiracy) 
he  was  seconded  by  Mr.  Bezaleel  Wells,  who  declared  him- 
self "  ready  to  proclaim  to  the  diocess  of  Ohio,  and  to  the 
world  that  Bishop  Chase  was,  in  all  this  controversy,  an 
injured  man — his  motives,  and  his  conduct  misrepresent- 
ed ;"*  which  assertions  Mr.  Wells  completely  established. 

The  name  of  the  clergyman  who  supported,  and  voted 
for  the  amendment  of  Mr.  Goddard,  was  Intrepid  Morse, 
rector  of  St.  Paul's,  Steubenville. 

Well  named ! — Mr.  Morse's  sponsors  must  have  had 
some  foresight  of  his  stern  virtue  in  after  life.  Amongst 
his  clerical  colleagues  on  the  occasion  of  their  defection, 
the  tribute  of  a  sacred  bard  to  the  leige  love  of  a  kindred 
spirit  may  be  not  inaptly  rendered  : — 

Faitnful  found 
Among  the  faithless,  faithful  only  he ; 
Among  [his  brethren]  false,  unmoved, 
Unshaken,  unseduced,  unterrified, 
His  loyalty  he  kept — his  love — his  zeal ; 
Nor  number,  nor  example,  with  him  wrought 
To  swerve  from  truth,  or  change  his  constant  mind. 
Though  siiisrleA 


*  The  numerous  English  benefactors  of  Kenyon  College,  and  friends  of 
Bishop  Chase  will  like  to  know  the  names  of  those  laymen  who  voted  with 
Messers.  Goddard  and  Wells;  they  are: — T.  T.  Fraker,  John  Clements, 
J.  Hickcox,  A.  Holmes,  J.  H.  Viers,  J.  McCullough,  B.  M.  Atherton,  J.  Foster, 
G.  H.  Griswold,  D.  Flipping,  Arious  Nye,  C.  Curtis,  J.  Glass,  R.  Maxwell, 
S.  P.  Chase. 

1 1  could  not  resist  an  inclination,  which  an  acquaintance  with  the  circum- 
stances of  the  Kenyon  business  through  the  printed  accounts,  made  all  power- 
ful, to  visit  this  gentleman  on  the  occasion  of  a  western  trip,  (if  the  term  may 
now  be  permitted')  so  powerfully  was  I  interested  in  Eishop  Chase's  history, 
and  fortunes.  This  visit  will  be  described  in  a  subsequent  chapter.  In  Mr. 
Morse's  parlour,  with  the  venerable  features  of  the  good  prelate  looking  down 


128  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

Bishop  Chase  hastened  his  departure  from  the  hill  of 
Gambier,  though  his  place  of  ultimate  destination  could 
not  be  determined.  Retiring  to  a  farm  belonging  to  his 
niece  about  twenty  miles  from  the  scene  of  his  success  and 
his  sufferings,  he  devoted  his  attention  to  its  cultivation, 
and  ministered  in  the  character  of  a  missionary  priest  to 
the  spiritual  wants  of  the  neighbourhood.  In  this  "  Valley 
of  Peace"  as  he  named  his  retreat  he  was  visited  by  one  of 
his  former  friends,  (Mr.  Wells)  on  his  way  to  Michigan, 
and  induced  to  remove  to  a  richer  soil  in  that  state,  whi- 
ther he  transferred  his  family  on  the  fourth  of  July  1832. 
He  left  Ohio — into  which  he  had  entered  a  solitary  pioneer 
of  the  cross,  to  plant  the  standard  of  apostolic  order — with 
fourteen  clergymen,  eight  parish  churches,  college  buildings 
advancing  towards  completion  standing  upon  eight  thou- 
sand acres  of  land.* 

How  wonderfully  is  the  wrath  of  man  made  to  praise 
God !  The  solitary  missionary  wandering  forth  to  the  then 
almost  desert  wilds  of  Michigan,  the  staff  of  his  apostle- 
ship  snatched  from  his  grasp  by  unscrupulous  hands,  was 
to  be  led  by  another  Hand  into  a  territory  far  remote  even 
from  Ohio,t  where,  maintained  by  the  same  power  he  was 
to  rear  up  a  second  school  of  prophets,  exceeding  the  for- 
mer in  extent  and  plan  :  an  institution  to  which  future  gen- 
erations will  point  as  a  trophy  of  the  signal  and  certain 
success  attending — a  faithful  trust  in  divine  prov- 
idence !  The  indomitable  perseverance  of  the  western 
apostle  has  overcome  every  obstacle  which  selfishness 
and  infidelity  throw  around  the  American  missionary's  path 

on  us  from  the  faithful  canvass,  I  richly  enjoyed  a  long  evening's  conversation, 
of  which  the  history  and  fortunes  of  Bishop  Chase  formed  the  principle  burden. 
Dear  to  the  heart  is  such  a  reminiscence  ! 

*  The  Ohio  clergy  now  exceed  sixty  in  number. 

t  The  wide  state  of  Indiana  lies  between  Ohio  and  Illinois. 


YENYON    COLLEGE    TROUBLES.  129 

in  her  western  territory ;  and  in  planting  another  diocess 
where  twenty- two  clergymen  look  up  to  him  with  filial  love 
and  unreserved  confidence,  and  rearing  up  a  second  univer- 
sity he  has  awakened  a  zeal  among  the  friends  of  the 
Church  in  the  far  west  which  is  seen  in  the  rapid  extension 
of  her  borders  over  countries  many  hundred  miles  even 
from  the  prairies  of  Illinois. 

In  the  present  Convention  Bishop  Chase's  election  to  the 
mitre  of  Illinois  by  the  six  clergymen  of  that  state  was 
confirmed  by  both  houses,  and  he  again  took  his  seat  in 
the  house  of  bishops—"  A  veteran  soldier,  a  bishop  of  the 
cross,  whom  hardships  never  have  discouraged,  whom  no 
difficulties  seem  to  daunt,  and  who  entered  upon  his  new 
campaign  with  all  the  chivalry  of  thirty-five,  was  cor- 
dially welcomed  to  his  seat  amongst  the  councillers  of 
the  church."* 

It  only  remains  to  add,  in  the  merest  summary  of  facts, 
the  result  to  the    institution    on   Gambier  Hill,  of  Bishop 
Chase's  withdrawal  from  it.     Like  the  vineyard  of  Naboth 
to  the  King  of  Israel,  "  the  possession  of  an  inheritance" 
violently  wrested   from   its   lawful   keeper,   "brought   evil 
upon"  the  Ahabs  of  Kenyon  College.     The  indecent  haste 
with  which  they  proceeded,— the  prompt  action  by  which 
the    episcopal   vacancy  was   filled  in    the  election  of  Mr. 
Mcllvaine— « indicating"  as  Bishop  Chase  remarks  «  that 
they  had  come  prepared  to  act,"— the  hurry  shown  in  com- 
mencing the  work  of  demolition  and  sacrilege,— and  lastly, 
the  contempt  shown  for  the  will  of  the  donors,  and  the  open 
violation  of  a  solemn  contract  made  with  them  in  the  offer 
of  four  thousand  acres  of  college  lands— were  all  indica- 
tions of  the  honesty  of  the  acting  "  trustees,"  and  signifi- 
cant earnests  of  their  moral  qualifications  to  undertake  the 


*  Bishop  Doane. 

9 


130  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

general  superintendence  of  the  institution,  and  more  par- 
ticularly the  responsible  business  of  tuition  ! 

The  new  bishop  soon  found  that  he  was  only  elected  as 
a  more  pliant  instrument  in  the  hands  of  the  professors, 
for  accomplishing  their  projects  of  aggrandizement.  "  Our 
newly  elected  bishop,"  writes  one  of  the  delegates  of  the 
Ohio  Convention  in  1832,  "  is  not  expected  to  take  upon 
himself  the  immediate  superintendence  of  our  seminary — 
nay  it  is  asserted  by  the  'reformers'  that  he  will  do  no 
such  thing, — but  that  he  will  itinerate  and  preach  to  large 
congregations,  which,  it  is  averred  he  has  a  wonderful 
faculty  of  assembling ;  while  the  seminary  (which  should 
be  in  unity  with  the  General  Seminary,  and  the  Church 
of  America)  will  be  managed  by  those  who  have  sacri- 
ficed their  father  and  friend — their  benefactor,  without 
whose  patronage  they  would  now  have  been  in  obscurity, 
and  almost  revolutionized  the  character  of  our  Church 
merely,  it  is  believed,  to  perpetuate  the  enjoyment,  of  their 
salaries,  and  retain  for  a  longer  space  their  usurped  au- 
thority on  Gambier  Hill."  The  scheme  of  merging  the 
seminary  in  the  college,  was  effected  without  any  consult- 
ation with  the  new  bishop ;  and  an  act  of  the  Legislature 
of  Ohio  was  obtained  without  his  consent  newly  incorpo- 
rating the  Theological  Seminary  as  a  separate  college,  in 
conformity  with  the  views  of  the  professors.  The  work 
was  completed  in  1839  by  an  act  supplementary  to  this,  by 
which  "  the  Bishop  of  Ohio  is  denuded  and,  contrary  to  the 
intention  of  the  founder  and  donors,  severed  from  all  con- 
nexion with  Kenyon  College ;  and  what  is  more  still,  all 
the  property  given  by  the  donors  or  the  founder,*  or  other- 

*  Bishop  Chase's  own  contributions  were  munificent.  He  had  given  his 
farm,  library,  several  large  sums  of  money, — in  fact  nearly  his  all;  but,  of  course 
(as  in  the  case  of  the  English  donors)  conditional  upon  the  non-alienation  of 
the  lands,  and  the  continuance  of  the  original  Constitution,  by  which  the  college 


KENYON    COLLEGE    TROUBLES.  131 

wise  acquired  by  his  management  or  industy,  is  by  one 
sweep  thrown  into  the  hands  of  a  separate  body  from  the 
designed  seminary,  and  all  this  without  even  naming  the 
bishop  "* 

This  last  was  an  independent  action  of  the  trustees  ;  done, 
writes  Bishop  Chase  "  contrary  to  the  wishes  of  the  present 
Bishop  of  Ohio,"  who  "  expressed  some  words  of  caution  to 
the  trustees  lest  they  should  go  too  fast  and  far." 

Bishop  Mc  Ilvaine  has  likewise  in  his  "Address  at  the 
laying  the  corner  stone  of  Bexley  Hall,"t  done  full  justice 
to  his  worthy  predecessor  ;  on  which  occasion  he  stated — 
that  Kenyon  College,  as  originally  founded,  has  "  no  incor- 
poration, no  property,  no  trustees,  no  faculty,  except  as  it  is 
part  and  parcel  of  the  Theological  Seminary ;  being  simply 
a  preparatory  branch  of  that  Seminary ;  having  this  only 
for  its  distinctive  college  feature,  "  that  when  the  faculty 
of  the  Theological  Se??iinary  are  acting  in  reference  to 
the  affairs  of  that  preparatory  branch,  they  act  as  the 

of  Kenyon  was  essentially  a  branch,  and  attached  only  to  the  Seminary,  with 
the  presidency  of  which  the  episcopal  officer  should  be  (or  Lords  Kenyon  and 
Gambier  would  never  have  contributed  a  dollar)  perpetually  identified ;  whereas 
the  institution  which  Bishop  Chase  founded  was,  to  use  his  own  words,  "  de- 
funct, and  those  who  were  in  possession  of  the  property  which  he  gave  and 
collected  would  be  obliged  to  surrender  were  an  action,  duly  setting  forth  the 
nature  and  evidence  of  the  case  brought  before  a  court  of  competent  jurisdic- 
tion." This  the  Bishop  affirmed  was  the  judgment  of  both  American  and  Eng- 
lish donors.  One  of  the  English  Bishops,  who  had  liberally  contributed,  wrote 
to  Bishop  Chase  : — 

"  Surely  they  have  broken  through  the  terms  and  conditions  on  which  your 
English  trustees  transmitted  our  money  to  your  hands.  They  have  forfeited 
our  money,  and  can  be  called  on  to  refund  it." 

It  was  a  heartless  act  on  the  part  of  these  reverend  repudiators  that  they  re- 
fused to  refund  a  thousand  dollars  which  Bishop  Chase  had  set  apart  for  the 
erection  on  Gambier  Hill  of  a  house  for  his  own  residence ;  and  the  delay  attend- 
ing his  getting  from  them  some  arrears  of  salary,  etc.,  would  have  caused  him 
"  distressing  consequences,"  but  for  the  timely  assistance  of  a  distant  brother. 

*  Reminiscences,  p.  823.  t  Named  after  Lord  Bexley. 


132  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

faculty  of  a  college  ;  and  when  they  confer  degrees  upon 
the  graduates  of  that  branch,  they  do  so,  not  in  the  name 
of  the  president  and  professors  of  the  Theological  /Semi- 
nary, but  of  Kenyon  College." 

As  further  proof,  to  use  Bishop  Chase's  words,  that  his 
successor  has  "  endeavoured  to  throw  off  the  incubus  under 
which  he  had  been  placed  at  his  consecration,  and  has  been 
brought  to  his  right  understanding  of  the  matter,"  he 
recommended  to  the  Ohio  Convention  of  1839  a  change  in 
the  constitution  of  the  Seminary,  in  conformity  with  the 
foregoing,  though  without  falling  back  upon  the  whole  pro- 
visions of  the  original  act  of  incorporation,  obtained  in 
1824.  Though  this  alteration  (agreed  to  by  the  Ohio  Con- 
vention) did  not  receive  Bishop  Chase's  concurrence  in  the 
House  of  Bishops,  being,  as  he  records,  "  contrary  to  the 
fundamental  law  of  the  Seminary,  which  neither  the  Con- 
vention, nor  Legislature,  nor  any  power  short  of  that  of 
the  donors  can  alter,"  yet  it  places  the  institution  at  Gani- 
bier  on  a  footing  more  closely  in  conformity  with  the  design 
of  the  original  donors  than  previously  existed,  and  was  car- 
ried into  effect  contrary  to  the  wish  of  those  who  planned 
Bishop  Chase's  removal. 

Bishop  Mc  Ilvaine  has  also  greatly  exerted  himself  in 
gathering  funds  for  the  college  and  schools,  which  have 
been  twice  jeopardized  by  the  ill  management  of  the  trus 
tees,  whose  departure  from  the  original  designs  of  the 
founder,  has  proved  nearly  fatal  to  the  existence  of  the  in- 
stitution. Though  still  in  some  degree  under  the  baleful 
influence  which  drove  Bishop  Chase  into  the  wilds  of 
Michigan  in  1831,  Kenyon  College  it  is  hoped  may  yet  be 
saved  from  threatening  ruin,  and  prove  an  eminent  blessing 
to  future  generations  in  Ohio. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

.  RHODE    ISLAND. NARRAGANSETT    BAY. 

Rhode  Island,  as  all  the  world  knows,  was  first  found- 
ed by  Roger  Williams,  a  banished  exile  from  Massachusetts, 
where  he  had  advocated  sentiments  which  were  deemed 
heretical  by  the  puritan  magistrates  of  that  colony.  This 
was  in  1634.  The  "heretical"  doctrine  for  which  the  con- 
gregational ministers  of  Massachusetts  obtained  Williams's 
banishment  was  "  that  the  civil  magistrate  should  restrain 
crime,  but  never  control  opinion — should  punish  guilt  but 
never  violate  the  freedom  of  the  soul?* 

However  unsafe  this  doctrine  may  be  in  the  interpreta- 
tion which  Williams's  descendants  have  given  it,  it  was,  at 
the  least,  glaringly  inconsistent  for  his  enemies  to  make  it 
the  ground  of  a  capital  charge,  when  the  founders  of  their 
own  colony  had  left  England  on  the  alleged  grievance  of  its 
violation  there,  and  had  established  themselves  on  the  pro- 
fessed platform  of  religious  liberty.  The  rigour  with  which 
they  persecuted  all  who  dared  to  dissent  from  them,  even 
in  the  smallest  matters  of  doctrine  or  Church  government, 
affords  a  melancholy  and  salutary  instance  of  sectarian  in- 
tolerance when  its  leaders  obtain  uncontrolled  power  over  the 
persons  and  consciences  of  the  community.  The  opposition 
of  which  they  complained  from  the  "  English  arch  prelate," 
the  "  surpliced  Laud"  in  their  vexatious  labours  to  under- 
mine and  uproot  the  church  of  which  he  was  the  temporal 
guardian,  though  attended  with  undue  severity,  was  light- 

*  Bancroft.     Williams  was  a  baptist  minister. 


134  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

ness  itself  compared  to  their  own  proscriptions  almost  as 
soon  as  they  acquired  power,  and  constituted  the  "  standing 
order"  of  a  new  country :  a  term  still  retained  by  many  of 
the  congregational  preachers  of  Massachusetts  and  New 
Hampshire,  though  their  "  order"  is  reduced  to  an  inconsid- 
erable sect  amongst  a  multitude  of  others ;  and  in  this  their 
once  stronghold  their  religious  influence  as  a  denomination 
is  lessening  every  year. 

But  to  return  to  Roger  Williams. — Driven  forth  from  the 
family  of  his  white  brethren,  he  penetrated  the  wilderness 
till  he  found  the  habitation  of  the  native  Indians  on  Nar- 
ragansett  Bay,  whose  chiefs  Pokanoket,  Massasoit,  and 
Cananicut,  received  him  with  a  friendly  welcome,  and  in 
their  wigwams  he  found  a  temporary  shelter.  The  bay  on 
whose  banks  these  chiefs  dwelt,  indents  what  is  now  Rhode 
Island  State  about  thirty-five  miles,  running  north  from  the 
Atlantic  Ocean  ;  out  of  it  rise  five  principal  islands,  named 
respectively  Rhode,  Cananicut,  Prudence,  Hope  and  Pa- 
tience. The  largest  of  these,  Rhode  Island,  after  which 
the  state  is  called,  is  so  fertile,  and  so  picturesque  in  its 
scenery  that  it  has  long  enjoyed  the  appellation  of  "  the 
Eden  of  America."  Cananicut,  the  second  island  in  size, 
is  nine  miles  long,  varying  from  one  to  two  miles  in  breadth. 
There  is  nothing  like  a  town  or  village  in  this,  or  either  of 
the  islands  except  Rhode ;  the  population  being  composed 
exclusively  of  agriculturalists,  who  cultivate  a  soil  of  ex- 
traordinary richness. 

At  the  head  of  this  lovely  bay  Williams  established  him- 
self; calling  the  name  of  the  place  "Providence,"  in  token 
of  his  dependence  on  divine  favour.  There  the  city  of  Prov- 
idence, the  capital  of  the  state,  now  stands ;  with  its  univer- 
sity, its  churches,  its  state  house,  its  arcade,  its  harbour  fill- 
ed with  vessels,  and  its  twenty-two  thousand  inhabitants — 
the  second  city  in  New  England. 


CHAPTER  XXL 


DR.    CROCKER. 


Ecclesiastically,  Providence  has  much  to  recom- 
mend it.  Though  the  congregations  under  episcopal  govern- 
ment are  only  five  out  of  fourteen,  the  attachment  of  dif- 
ferent non-episcopal  denominations  of  Christians  to  their 
peculiar  systems  is  more  entirely  the  result  of  accident  in 
Rhode  Island,  than,  perhaps,  in  any  State  of  the  Union. 
That  spirit  of  opposition  to  any  restrictions  of  conscience 
which  marked  its  early  history,  is  shown  in  the  favour  with 
which  the  rapid  growth  of  episcopacy  has  been  regarded. 
From  looking  on  the  Church  with  an  unsuspicious  eye,  the 
intelligent  part  of  the  community  soon  discovered  that 
apostolic  order  and  ritual  worship  were  not  such  necessary 
precursors  of  prelatical  tyranny,  and  priestly  domination  as 
the  congregationalists  of  Massachusetts  had  represented 
them  to  be  ;  and  on  taking  a  nearer  view  of  her  bulwarks 
and  her  towers,  many  thousands  throughout  the  State  have 
been  led  to  enter  in;  and  to  make  her  ordinances  her 
security,  and  her  peace  their  own  portion,  and  the  heritage 
of  their  children. 

The  success  of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  Rhode  Island 
has  been  mainly  attributable,  under  God,  to  the  faithful 
and  persevering  efforts  of  her  ministering  servants.  The 
clergy  have  banded  together  as  one  man,  and  planted  the 
standard  of  the  cross  in  every  part  of  the  State.  These 
indefatigable  pioneers  have  left  no   place   unvisited  ;  and 


136  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

whilst  they  have  attracted  numbers  to  the  Church  by  their 
persuasive  eloquence,  they  have  held  them  there  by  their 
examples  and  holy  lives. 

The  distinguished  individual  whose  name  stands  above 
was  one  of  the  first  who  commenced  extending  the  borders 
of  the  Episcopal  Church  beyond  the  principal  towns  of 
Providence,  Newport,  and  Bristol.  His  labours  in  a  cause 
(in  which  his  services  are  voluntary  and  unpaid)  have  been 
arduous  and  unceasing  for  more  than  twenty  years.  Rec- 
tor of  a  numerous  and  wealthy  parish,  and  the  popular 
preacher  to  a  large  congregation,  his  worldly  interests  made 
it  unnecessary  for  him  to  extend  a  single  effort  beyond  the 
bounds  of  his  own  city  ;  yet  with  the  aid  of  several  laymen 
of  his  congregation  he  effected  the  establishment  of  another 
parish  in  a  neighbouring  town.  The  incumbent  of  this  new 
parish  (the  Rev.  John  Taft,)  and  another  labourer  who 
appeared  in  the  field,  viz.,  the  Rev.  John  Bristed,  rector  of 
St.  Michael's,  Bristol,  now  joined  Dr.  Crocker  in  the  work 
of  domestic  missions.  One  parish  was  organized  after 
another  :  the  completion  of  one  church  edifice  was  followed 
by  laying  the  corner  stone  of  a  new  one  ;  and  the  pious 
and  disinterested  originator  of  the  efforts  which  have  been 
so  signally  successful,  has  now  the  proud  satisfaction  of 
seeing  every  town  in  the  State  furnished  with  its  parish 
temple,  and  its  parish  priest. 

St.  John's  Church,  where  Dr.  Crocker  still  officiates, 
having  been  its  rector  forty-one  years,  is  a  venerable 
looking  stone  structure,  with  a  square  tower  and  pinnacles. 
In  the  interior  good  taste  has  preserved  the  arrangement 
of  European  churches.  The  doctor's  preaching,  though 
marked  by  little  originality  of  thought,  is  of  the  popular 
order  from  the  flowing  style,  and  graceful  delivery. 

Differing  greatly  in  the  latter  characteristic  from  the  rec- 
tor of  St.  John's,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Vinton,  rector  of  Grace- 


PROVIDENCE    PREACHERS.  137 

church*  (another  parish  in  Providence)  possesses  Chalmer's 
strength  of  reasoning  and  vehemence  of  style.  The  latter 
has  been  carefully  improved,  as  his  sermons  evidence  in 
their  purity  of  diction,  copiousness,  and  terseness  of  expres- 
sion. It  would  be  no  unqualified  praise  to  call  him  the 
Barrow  of  the  American  pulpit ;  nor  does  he  fall  short  of 
his  great  original  in  the  vigour  of  his  intellect  or  the  fervour 
of  his  devotional  ardour — while  the  peculiarties  of  Tillotson 
seemed,  in  an  equal  degree,  to  appertain  to  his  cotemporary ; 
with  whom,  during  the  period  of  my  residence  in  Provi- 
dence, he  divided  the  palm  of  public  favour.  The  com- 
parison of  a  discerning  writer  between  the  two  English 
divines  will  not  inaptly  apply  to  doctors  Crocker  and  Vin- 
ton :  "  While  simplicity,  languor  and  enervation  charac- 
terize the  productions  of  one,  richness,  vehemence  and' 
strength  form  the  chief  features  in  the  diction  of  the  other. 
To  the  former  belong  perspicuity  and  smoothness,  verbal 
purity  and  unaffected  ease  ;  to  the  latter,  a  fervid  fancy, 
and  a  poetic  ear,  glowing  figures,  and  harmonious  cadences." 

*  Since  promoted  to  St.  Paul's,  Boston. 

9* 


CHAPTER  XXIL 

COLLEGE    EDUCATION    IN    THE    UNITED    STATES. 

Public  attention  in  the  United  States  has  been  much 
directed  of  late  to  the  college  system  of  that  country ; 
which,  in  the  opinion  of  many  amongst  her  most  eminent 
teachers,  is  open  to  several  capital  objections ;  the  same 
perhaps  might  be  said  of  the  British  Universities,  though 
the  evils  under  which  they  labour  are  of  a  different  kind. 

One  of  the  evils  deplored  by  Dr.  Wayland  president  of 
Brown  University,  Providence,  is  common  to  both  countries, 
viz.,  residence  in  the  college,  and  boarding  in  common  ; 
but  the  stricter  discipline  at  Oxford  and  Cambridge  relative 
to  hours,  and  general  surveillance  from  superiors  gives 
them  an  advantage  in  this  particular,  which  the  open 
doors,  and  separate  residence  of  the  professors  in  an  Amer- 
ican college  are  without.  President  Wayland  is,  however, 
opposed  to  the  principle  of  the  thing  under  the  most  vigi- 
lant restrictions.  He  regards  it  as  equally  unsuited,  both 
to  the  younger  students,  and  to  those  further  advanced  in 
years.  The  one  it  releases  from  the  wholesome  influence 
of  home  and  friends,  and  the  other  it  retains  under  a  sys- 
tem of  discipline  incompatible  with  his  age  and  habits. 
Residence  likewise  favours  physical  indolence,  and  engen- 
ders the  lighter  infectious  diseases,  while  it  excludes  the 
comforts  and  attendance  which  sickness  requires. 

But  Dr.  Wayland's  principal  objection  to  the  present 
college  system  is  the  large  amount  of  nominal  study  re- 


AMERICAN    COLLEGE    SYSTEM.  139 

quired.  American  schools  require  three  times  the  amount 
of  teaching  within  precisely  the  same  time  as  formerly, 
and  yet  they  do  not  send  out  graduates  with  half  the  real 
learning  that  they  did  before  the  revolution.  The  infer- 
ence is  unavoidable  that  the  knowledge  acquired  is  more 
superficial. 

Dr.  Wayland's  own  testimony  to  this  fact  in  a  pamphlet 
now  lying  before  me,  may  be  received  with  confidence  as 
coming  from  a  native  professor,  and  one  who  deservedly 
enjoys  as  high  a  place  in  the  estimation  of  his  countrymen, 
as  any  public  teacher  in  the  United  States.  His  remedy 
for  the  evil  is  to  designate  the  exact  amount  of  knowledge 
necessary  for  graduation,  extending  the  term  to  five  or  six 
years  if  required, — to  enlarge  the  requirements  for  admis- 
sion,— and  to  limit  the  number  of  studies.  West  Point 
Military  Academy  is  an  example  of  the  true  system  in  this 
latter  particular ;  to  which,  and  to  the  English  Universities 
this  candid  writer  points  attention.  "  By  learning  one 
science  well"  he  adds  "  we  learn  how  to  study,  and  how  to 
master  a  subject.  Having  made  this  attainment  in  one 
study,  we  readily  apply  it  to  all  other  studies.  We  acquire 
the  habit  of  thoroughness,  and  carry  it  to  all  other  matters 
of  enquiry.  The  course  of  study  at  West  Point  Academy 
is  very  limited,  but  the  sciences  pursued  are  carried  much 
further  than  in  other  institutions  in  our  country  ;  and  it 
is  owing  to  this  that  the  reputation  of  the  institution  is  so 
deservedly  high.  The  English  University  course  is,  in 
respect  to  the  number  of  branches  pursued,  limited ;  and 
yet  it  is  remarkably  successful  in  developing  the  powers 
of  the  mind.  Observe  the  maturity  and  vigour  which  the 
young  men  there  frequently  obtain.  They  sometimes  go 
from  the  University — as,  for  instance,  Pitt,  Fox,  and  Can- 
ning— directly  to  the  House  of  Commons,  and  are  com- 


140        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

petent  at  once  to  take  an  important  part  in  the  labours  of 
that  august  assembly." 

Dr.  Wayland  also  recommends  the  English  practice  of 
written  instead  of  oral  examinations  ;  and  that  most  effec- 
tive one  of  stimulants  to  literary  attainments,  in  the  form 
of  premiums,  fellowships,  etc. 

A  more  important  suggestion  than  either  of  the  forego- 
ing relates  to  the  professional  study  of  pupils.  Dr.  W. 
proposes  the  creation  of  other  degrees — such  as  Bachelor 
of  Science,  or  of  Literature ;  a  different  course  being  em- 
braced by  each  ;  also  that  the  degree  of  master  of  arts  be 
conferred  only  on  those  who  have  pursued  successfully  the 
whole  circle  of  study  marked  out  for  the  candidates  for 
both  degrees ;  the  affix  would  then  designate  a  degree  of 
positive  attainment,  which  at  present  it  does  not. 

How  far  any  of  the  suggestions  of  this  honest  and  clear- 
headed writer  and  scholar  will  be  acted  upon,  time  will 
soon  show.  He  is  one  of  those  men  who  have  a  great 
share  in  the  work  of  directing  the  public  mind,  which  even 
in  enlightened  republics  "  needs  a  prompter."  His  "  Ele- 
ments of  Moral  Science"  has  taken  the  place  of  Paley  in 
nearly  every  American  College ;  and  among  American 
authors  is  only  equalled  for  closeness  of  thought  and  clear- 
ness of  reasoning  by  his  "  Political  Economy"  likewise  a 
text  book  in  several  universities.  His  independance  and 
contempt  of  that  kind  of  popularity  so  readily  gained  in 
republican  communities  by  humouring  every  caprice,  and 
appealing  to  nothing  but  the  vanity  of  the  multitude  is 
eloquently  exhibited  in  the  following  sentiment : — 

"  If  we  would  be  popular,  let  us  remember  that  we  can 
"  never  attain  our  end  by  aiming  at  it  directly.  The  ap- 
"  probation  of  our  fellow  citizens  will  in  the  end  be  confer- 
"  red,  not  on  those  who  desire  to  please  them,  but  on  those 


AMERICAN    COLLEGE    SYSTEM.  141 

"  who  honestly  do  them  good.  Popularity  is  valuable  when 
"  it  follows  us,  not  when  we  run  after  it :  and  he  is  most 
"  sure  of  attaining  it  who,  cari?ig  nothing'  about  it,  honest- 
"  ly  and  in  simplicity  and  kindness  earnestly  labours  to  ren- 
<:  der  his  fellow  men  wiser,  and  happier,  and  better." 


CHAPTER  XXI11. 

PROVIDENCE. OLNEYVILLE WEST    SMITHFIELD. 

FRUITS    OF    THE    "VOLUNTARY    SYSTEM." 

I  received  my  deacon's  orders  from  Bishop  Griswold  on 
the  15th  of  March,  1837,  previous  to  which  and  during  a 
short  ministerial  career  in  Rhode  Island  I  visited  at  differ- 
ent times  almost  every  section  and  corner  of  the  state  ; 
and,  therefore,  brought  away  with  me  a  tolerably  correct 
knowledge  of  its  geographical,  political,  religious  and  social 
features.  It  will  be  no  information  to  many  readers  to 
state  that  territorially  Rhode  Island  is  the  smallest  in 
the  confederation ;  though,  as  its  citizens  take  care  to 
remind  the  visitant  from  the  old  world,  "much  larger 
than  many  of  the  European  sovereignties."  The  climate 
is  perceptibly  milder  than  that  of  the  other  New  England 
states  ;  though,  except  on  the  Bay  Islands  already  noticed, 
the  soil  is  usually  light,  and  requires  much  cultivation. 
Some  parts  of  the  state  present  a  few  natural  beauties,  but 
the  scenery  is  generally  tame. 

The  city  of  Providence  is  almost  equally  divided  by  the 
Providence  River,  which  is  crossed  by  two  bridges.  The 
streets  are  generally  well  built ;  many  of  them  elegant. 
The  east  side  has  the  largest  number  of  private  residences. 
It  rises  from  the  river,  and  at  an  elevated  point  stands  the 
university,  consisting  of  two  ranges  of  buildings,  with  an 
elegant  chapel  in  the  centre.  In  the  business  or  western 
section  of  the  city,  the  arcade  forms  a  distinguishing  orna- 


OLNEYVILLE. — WEST    SMITIIFIELD.  143 

ment.  It  faces  on  two  parallel  streets,  the  fronts  being 
ornamented  with  high  columns  whose  shafts  are  each  a 
single  block  of  stone. 

At  the  head  of  Providence  River,  which  is  the  mouth  of 
another  river  by  name  rising  in  the  north  of  the  county,  a 
considerable  hydraulic  power  has  given  rise  to  some  large 
manufactories  for  woollen  and  cotton  goods.  The  village 
thus  formed  is  called  Olneyville,  and  is  a  pleasant  walk 
from  the  city,  presenting  as  you  approach  it  by  the  turnpike 
road  the  appearance  of  great  mechanical  ingenuity  in  the 
midst  of  rural  beauty.  The  first  journey  I  made,  after  re- 
moving to  the  state,  was  by  this  road. 

From  Olneyville,  where  I  spent  several  days  in  Christian 
intercourse  with  a  beloved  friend,  the  road  leads  directly  to 
the  principal  towns  in  the  west  of  the  state.     Several  man- 
ufacturing villages  were  passed;  vegetable  and  fruit  gar- 
dens disclosed  their  stores ;  and  the  usual  signs  of  cultiva- 
tion continued  for  twelve  or  fourteen  miles,  when  the  face 
of  the  country  changes  for  a  gravelly  soil,  and  a  broken 
surface,  till  West  Smithfield  is  reached.     Here  a  worthy 
baptist  minister  resided,  with  whom,  during  my  residence 
in  Rhode  Island,  I   formed   a   close   acquaintance.     This 
meeting  house,  which  was  very  commodious,   occupied  a 
square  in  the  centre  of  the  village,  and  was  the  only  place 
of  worship  it  could  then  boast.     The  "  village  preacher's 
modest  mansion"  stood  in  a  shady  lane  leading  from  the 
main  road,  surrounded  by  his  own  land,  of  which  he  was 
the  sole  cultivator.     Having  the  spiritual  oversight  of  all 
the  country  within  many  miles  of  his  dwelling,  and  deriving 
a  bare  support  beyond  what  his  farm  produced,  nearly  all 
his  time  was  occupied  by  parochial  duties ;  and  his  horse 
was  in  more  constant  requisition  than  the  village  doctor's. 
In  addition  to  this  charge  he  preached  every  alternate  Sun- 
day at  another  village  twelve  miles  distant  when  the  meet- 


144  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

ing  house  at  Smithfield  was  closed.  I  give  this  as  a  fair 
illustration  of  the  voluntary  system :  besides  exhibiting  the 
wretched  parsimony  with  which  the  ministrations  of  the 
gospel  are  sometimes  sustained,  and  the  total  inefficiency 
of  non-episcopal  ministrations  to  meet  the  spiritual  wants 
of  a  large  community.  Here  in  one  of  the  oldest,  mos't 
thickly  settled  parts  of  the  country — a  region  whose  inhabi- 
tants think  they  enjoy  extraordinary  religious  privileges — a 
population  of  about  three  thousand  souls,  besides  a  distant 
congregation,  were  wholly  dependant  on  a  single  minister, 
to  whom  they  allowed  a  stipend  so  small  that,  but  for  his 
farm  (the  portion  of  his  wife,)  it  would  not  have  supported 
him. 

The  consequences  of  this  mode  of  sustaining  religion  are 
— -just  such  as  may  be  expected !  In  this,  and  other  agri- 
cultural districts  which  I  have  visited,  the  closed  sanctuary 
on  the  returning  sabbath  drives  the  idle  to  the  tavern  and 
the  industrious  to  the  plough.  Even  in  several  parts  of 
New  England  that  day  is  not  in  any  manner  distinguished 
from  the  other  days  of  the  week.  The  farmer,  surrounded 
by  his  labourers,  is  seen  engaged  in  the  customary  labours 
of  the  field ;  the  farm-yard  presents  the  usual  busy  scene  ; 
flour  and  saw  mills  are  going,  stores  and  bar  rooms  are 
open,  and  all  the  avocations  of  business  and  pleasure  go  on 
as  usual. 

But  this  is  only  a  part  of  the  evil.  The  absence  of  that 
oral  instruction  which  the  excessive  cares  of  many  country 
ministers,  prevent  them  from  communicating  to  their  peo- 
ple is  one,  and  but  one  among  several  circumstances  which 
expose  them  to  the  ever  ready  approaches  of  infidelity  and 
atheism.  Add  to  these  hindrances  to  the  full  establishment 
of  Christianity,  the  perplexity  caused  by  the  number  of  sects,* 

*  In  America  their  name  is  legion.  In  Rhode  Island  alone  there  are  thirty 
shades  of  religious  belief. 


WEST    SMITHFIELD.  145 

conflicting  in  their  views  and  modes — the  incompetency 
of  any  one  amongst  them,  from  their  imperfect  systems 
of  church  government  to  make  any  united  movement, 
still  more  for  the  whole  to  combine  their  strength, — and  the 
small  degree  of  reverence  for  the  place  and  forms  of  reli- 
gion, which  the  extemporary  mode  of  conducting  worship 
fosters,  and  who  can  wonder  at.  the  result,  which  I  give  in 
the  words  of  a  writer  in  the  New  York  "  Churchman," — 
only  reminding  the  reader  that  till  lately,  the  episcopal 
Church  exercised  less  influence  in  New  England  than  in 
any  other  section  of  the  Union. 

"  I  do  not  wish"  writes  this  correspondent  "  to  lessen  the 
character  of  the  New  Englanders  in  the  estimation  of  any 
of  your  readers  ;  there  is  much  of  real  piety  and  just  views 
of  religion  among  them  ;  but  I  am  convinced  that,  for  some 
reason  or  other,  infidelity  has  made  rapid  strides  during  the 
last  twenty  years,  and  that  at  present,  not  one  half  of  the 
adult  population  are  in  the  habit  of  attending  any  religious 
worship,  or  even  belong  to  any  Christian  sect.  I  am  able 
to  state  this  from  statistical  facts,  gathered  by  clergymen 
themselves,  from  different  parts  of  the  New  England  States. 
In  conversation  lately  with  a  physician  from  a  county  in 
Connecticut,  whose  practice  extends  through  nearly  the 
whole  county,  and  whose  acquaintance  with  the  people  is 
not  surpassed  by  any  man  in  the  state,  he  remarked,  '  I  am 
surprised  to  find  how  prevalent  infidel  opinions  are  among 
the  farmers  of  Connecticut.  It  is  very  common  to  find  the 
works  of  Paine,  and  other  infidel  writings  making  up  near- 
ly the  whole  of  their  libraries,  and  with  many,  the  French 
Philosophical  Dictionary  is  a  sort  of  '  Vade  Mecum.'  The 
metaphysics  of  divinity,  and  the  fanaticism  of  the  new 
school  revivalists,  have  latterly  tended  to  the  rapid  spread 
of  sceptical  notions  ;  and  if  things  go  on  for  the  next  fifty 
years  as  they  have  for  the  last  twenty,  Connecticut  will  be 

10 


146  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

as  noted  for  its  infidelity,  as  she  has  been  in  former  days 
for  puritanical  strictness.' " 

The  same  testimony  is  borne  by  a  sagacious  writer* 
whose  comments  under  this  head  have  received  high 
praise  from  several  quarters  in  America  for  their  correct- 
ness. I  shall  make  no  apology  for  transcribing  a  portion 
of  them. 

"  Though  every  where  in  New  England  the  greatest 
possible  decency  and  respect,  with  regard  to  morals  and 
religion  is  still  observed,  I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that 
I  do  not  think  the  New  Englanders  (or,  indeed,  the  Ameri- 
cans generally,  as  far  as  I  can  judge)  a  religious  people. 
The  assertion,  I  know,  is  paradoxical,  but  it  is  neverthe- 
less true  ;  that  is,  if  a  strong  and  earnest  belief  be  a  ne- 
cessary element  in  a  religious  character  ;  to  me  it  seems  to 
be  its  very  essence  and  foundation.  I  am  not  now  speak- 
ing of  belief  in  the  truth,  but  belief  in  something  or  any 
thing  which  is  removed  from  the  action  of  the  senses.  Now 
I  appeal  to  any  candid  American  whether  it  be  not  the  re- 
ceived doctrine  among  nine-tenths  of  his  countrymen,  that 
creeds  (religious  dogmas,  as  they  are  called)  are  matters  of 
no  moment ;  that,  so  long  as  a  man  acts  sincerely  up  to 
what  he  believes  he  has  as  good  a  chance  of  salvation,  for 
he  is  as  likely  to  be  right,  as  his  neighbour  ;  and  that 
morality  (so  called)  is  perfectly  independent  of,  and  infinite- 
ly more  important  than  religious  belief.  This  is,  I  say,  the 
avowed  doctrine  of  the  great  majority  now  in  America  ; 
and  as  long  as  such  is  the  case  outward  morality  may, 
indeed,  prevail  to  a  great  extent  (and  I  freely  admit  that  in 
no  country  have  I  seen  more  appearances  of  it  than  in  New 
England),  under  the  influence  of  traditionary  habits,  en- 
lightened self-interest,  and  the  law  of  conscience, — but  there 
is  no  religion.     No  man  can  be  said  to  believe  in  a  religi- 

*  "  Letters  from  America"  by  J.  R.  Godley  Esq. 


WEST    SMITIIFIELD.  147 

ous  system  if  he  believes  at  the  same  time  that  another 
religious  system  has  an  equal  chance  of  being  true  in  the 
points  of  difference  which  exist  between  them  ;  for  all  re- 
ligions profess  to  be  (as  to  their  distinctive  tenets)  exclu- 
sively true,  and  propound  doctrines  to  be  believed  as  ne- 
cessary to  salvation  :  indeed,  it  is  impossible  to  conceive  a 
religion  that  should  not  do  so  ;  such  a  course  would  be  not 
only  shallow  and  unphilosophical,  but  self-contradictory 
and  suicidal.  This  is  pre-eminently  the  case  with  respect 
to  Christianity  ;  the  apostolic  epistles  are  filled  with  pas- 
sages which,  had  they  been  written  by  a  modern  theologian, 
would  have  been  branded  as  most  intolerant  and  unchari- 
table ;  there  they  stand,  however,  witnessing  against  the 
indifferentism  which  I  have  described,  proclaiming  that  if 
an  angel  from  heaven  preach  any  other  gospel  he  shall  be 
accursed  ;  and  commanding  us  not  even  to  bid  '  God  speed' 
to  any  that  '  bring  not  this  doctrine.' 

"  I  am  not  trusting  to  my  own  limited  observation  in  ar- 
riving at  this  conclusion  :  I  find  in  M.  de  Tocqueville's 
work  an  assertion  of  the  same  fact ;  he  accounts  for  it,  in- 
deed, in  a  different  way,  and  attributes  it  (like  every  thing 
else,  according  to  his  theory)  to  the  operation  of  equality. 
I,  on  the  contrary,  am  inclined  to  think  that  the  material- 
ism thus  admitted  to  exist  may  chiefly  be  traced  to  the  pre- 
vailing indifference  with  respect  to  religious  creeds  ;  and 
that  this  indifference,  again,  is  intimately  connected  with 
the  compulsory  neutrality  of  the  government  in  religious 
matters.  In  public  schools,  in  the  halls  of  the  legisla- 
ture, in  national  institutions,  all  religions  are  placed  upon 
an  equality  ;  chaplains  are  selected  indiscriminately  from 
each,  as  the  majority  of  the  day  may  happen  to  deter- 
mine, (one  year,  perhaps  a  Roman  Catholic,  and  the  next  a 
Unitarian) ;  and  the  smallest  preference  of  one  religion  to 
another,  that  is.  the  recognition  of  any  definite,  objective 


148  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

truth,  would  not  be  admitted  for  a  moment.  Now,  this 
complete  neutrality,  entering  as  it  does  into  so  many  parts 
of  the  system — every  part,  in  fact,  where  men  act  in  a  cor- 
porate capacity — may  be  necessary ;  indeed,  I  feel  it  quite 
impossible,  under  the  actual  circumstances  of  the  United 
States,  even  to  suggest  an  alteration  or  a  remedy  ■  but 
surely  the  effect  upon  the  public  mind  must  be  very  preju- 
dicial to  earnestness  and  zeal ;  and  without  earnestness 
and  zeal  religion  is  a  name — a  lifeless  form ! 

"  On  the  other  hand,  I  am  quite  ready  to  admit  that  (as 
was,  indeed,  to  be  expected)  there  is  little  acrimony  or  bit- 
terness entering  into  religious  controversy  in  America. 
Whether  the  absence  of  odium  theologicum  be  attributable 
to  indifference  (as  I  think,)  or  to  '  charity'  (as  an  American 
would  probably  contend,)  the  effect  is  undoubted,  and,  jiro 
tanto,  highly  desirable.  Few  things  constitute  a  subject 
for  more  self-gratulatory  contrasts  to  Americans  than  the 
mutual  hostility  and  the  proselytizing  spirit  of  European 
sects,  compared  with  the  '  philosophical  and  comprehensive 
tone  which  is  fashionable  among  religionists  here.'  For  my 
part  I  prefer  the  earnest  striving  after  truth,  with  its  accom- 
panying evil,  to  the  carelessness  about  it,  with  its  accom- 
panying good.  A  party  in  Boston  will  comprise,  generally, 
almost  as  many  varieties  of  theological  opinion  as  of  indi- 
viduals ;  and  there  will  be  no  danger  whatever  of  disagree- 
able discussions  resulting  therefrom.  Not  merely  is  the 
subject  tacitly  suppressed,  or  set  aside,  as  forbidden  ground, 
but  there  is  none  of  that  embarrassment  and  awkwardness 
which  it  is  hardly  possible  to  avoid  in  the  habitual  inter- 
course of  parties  who,  upon  subjects  which  they  have  very 
much  at  heart,  entertain  radically  opposite  opinions,  and 
which  actually  do  appear,  here  as  elsewhere,  under  such 
circumstances.  A  man  who  would  feel  himself  embarrass- 
ed and  uncomfortable  if  his  next  neighbour  differed  from 


WEST    SMITHFIELD.  149 

him  on  the  subject  of  a  national  bank,  and  who  would  cer- 
tainly consider  particular  opinions  about  slavery  as  consti- 
tuting a  sufficient  cause  for  avoiding  the  society  of  the  man 
who  held  them,  would  express  the  most  supreme  and  con- 
temptuous indifference  as  to  whether  the  rest  of  the  party, 
with  whom  he  was  associating  on  the  most  intimate  terms, 
were  Christians  or  Mahometans,  heretics  or  infidels.  Is 
this  habit  reconcilable  (I  do  not  say  in  the  case  of  every  in- 
dividual, but  generally)  with  a  true  view  of  the  relative  im- 
portance of  temporal  and  eternal  interests  ?  I  have  strong 
suspicions  of  the  nature  of  that  '  charity'  which  leads  to 
tolerance  and  '  comprehensiveness'  in  religious  matters 
alone,  while  upon  all  other  subjects  it  leaves  political  ran- 
cour, party  feeling,  and  personal  hostility,  untouched  by  its 
influence. 

"  Again  ;  I  never  heard  of  a  man  taking  a  decidedly  re- 
ligious tone  in  Congress, — that  is,  openly  professing  Chris- 
tian motives  of  action  as  influencing  him  in  his  legislative 
as  well  as  his  social  capacity  ;  indeed,  I  have  reason  to 
think  that  such  a  profession  would  expose  him  to  jealousy 
and  suspicion,  as  savouring  of  bigotry.  I  hope  very  many 
do  act  from  such  motives  ;  but  that  public  opinion  cannot 
be  in  a  healthy  state,  which  would  forbid  their  being 
avowed.  America  ought  to  ask  herself  why  she  has  no 
such  statesmen  to  boast  of  as  a  Wilherforce,  a  Gladstone, 
and  many  others,  who  have  not  been  ashamed  to  recognise 
publicly  in  the  British  House  of  Commons  the  existence  of 
A  LAW  paramount  to  the  code  of  political  expediency,  and 
to  avow  the  duty  of  guiding  their  political  career  by  its  dic- 
tates. Where  this  is  not  the  case — where  either  from  in- 
difference or  fear  of  offence,  the  members  of  the  governing 
body  in  a  state  can  consent  to  exclude,  as  inconvenient  and 
out  of  place,  all  reference  to  those  religious  influences  which 
ought  to  be  continually  present  to  their  recollection,  per- 


150  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

vading  and  colouring  every  part  of  their  moral  being,  there 
is  imminent  danger  lest  that  state  should  sink  to  the  level 
of  a  joint-stock  company,  combined  for  the  mere  purpose 
of  securing  the  material  interests  of  the  partners,  and  po- 
litical science,  the  txiaTfyn  ap%iT£KTovUri,  be  reduced  there  to 
the  possession  of  a  certain  amount  of  economical  knowl- 
edge and  administrative  dexterity." 

The  rapid  increase  of  episcopal  churches,  and  episcopal 
influence  in  Connecticut,  and  throughout  the  eastern  states, 
might  allay  the  apprehensions  of  this  writer.  The  healing 
and  "  ancient  regimen  of  bishops,"  and  an  evangelical  lit- 
urgy, will  save  Christianity,  and  preserve  its  purity  too, 
amidst  any  influence,  infidel  or  heretical,  from  without. 
Both  were  divinely  appointed  in  the  Church  for  this  very 
purpose,  and  will  yet  prove  the  conservative  leaven  which 
will  rescue  New  England  from  utter  defection.* 

*  To  this  a  Yankee  preacher  (of  the  congregational  sect)  bears  his  unwilling 
testimony.  The  late  Dr.  Bellamy  of  Bethlem,  remarked  when  a  Church  con- 
gregation was  gathered  in  his  town,  "  I  care  nothing  for  this  or  that  sect,  which 
coming  up  in  a  night  will  perish  in  a  night ;  but  once  get  that  pesky  weed  of 
episcopacy  in  a  place,  and  you  can  never  root  it  out!" 

"  Can  we  suppose,"  writes  Mr.  Franklin  (of  Newark,  Delaware)  in  his  pop- 
ular treatise  on  the  Church  liturgy,  "  that  the  unitarian  preachers  who  wrought 
a  change  in  the  doctrinal  sentiments  of  a  large  body  of  the  congregational 
Church  in  New  England,  which  is  without  a  liturgy,  could  with  any  conscience 
or  success  have  continued  their  operations  in  a  Church  which  required  them 
week  after  week  to  address  the  person  of  the  Triune  God — to  declare  their  de- 
pendence on  the  atoning  sacrifice  of  Christ  for  pardon, — and  on  the  influence 
of  the  Holy  Ghost  for  their  spiritual  life  1  A  part,  too,  if  not  the  whole  of  the 
presbyterian  sect  in  England,  stabs  at  the  divinity  and  denies  the  atonement  of 
Jesus  Christ.  Had  these  bodies  been  blessed  with  an  evangelical  liturgy,  the 
ministers  who  dissented  from  those  grand  doctrines  which  form  the  Christian's 
hope,  would  in  all  probability,  if  at  all  conscientious,  have  ceased  to  promulgate 
their  views  in  connection  with  them,  and  thus  have  diminished  their  influence 
in  the  spread  of  their  heresy.  The  most  efficient  method  then  of  maintaining 
the  doctrines  of  Christian  truth  in  the  creed  of  a  church,  is  the  incorporation,  of 
them  in  a  liturgy  for  public  worship,  to  the  use  of  xchich  the  minister  is  bound. 
The  grand  doctrines  of  the  gospel  are  thus  necessarily  presented  to  the  minds 


CHEPACHET.  151 

Pursuing  the  road  to  Chepachet  the  country  somewhat 
improves  in  appearance,  and  the  farms  bear  marks  of  good 
cultivation.  Chepachet,  (since  the  scene  of  a  civil  insurrec- 
tion.) stands  on  a  river  of  that  name,  and  contains  about  a 
thousand  inhabitants.  The  kindness  and  hospitality  of  a 
number  of  friends  in  this  village  and  neighbourhood  du- 
ring a  protracted  visit  amongst  them,  will  always  be  re- 
membered with  gratitude. 

of  the  people,  and  the  minister  who  forsakes  and  opposes  them  will  betray  his 
inconsistency  to  others,  or  be  compelled  by  conscience  to  leave  the  church  to 
whose  doctrines  he  cannot  conform." 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

RHODE    ISLAND    CONVOCATIONS. 

It  is  the  practice  of  the  Rhode  Island  clergy  to  meet  in 
monthly  "  convocation"  for  the  purpose  of  deliberating  on 
the  general  state  of  the  Church  within  the  borders  of  the 
state,  and  to  devise  measures  for  its  extension.  It  was  un- 
der the  fostering  care  of  this  Convocation  that  the  greater 
number  of  the  parishes  rose  into  being,  and  by  it  weak  or 
declining  parishes  are  upheld.  Amongst  other  means  used 
to  sustain  the  influence  and  efficiency  of  the  clerical  office, 
a  fund  exists,  to  which  the  respective  members  pledge 
sums  proportionate  to  the  value  of  their  own  cures,  out  of 
which  the  incomes  of  clergymen  having  poor  congrega- 
tions, or  occupying  missionary  posts  in  the  state,  are  raised 
to  the  fixed  amount  of  five  hundred  dollars  if  married  men, 
and  three  hundred  if  single.  This  clerical  society,  though 
originating  with  several  presbyters,  had  from  the  com- 
mencement of  its  operations  the  full  countenance  and  aid 
of  the  late  venerable  bishop,  and  is  sanctioned  by  the  pres- 
ent diocesan.* 

These  meetings  are  judiciously  held  at  every  parish  in 
the  diocess  in  turn.  At  the  first  I  attended,  which  was  con- 
vened at  Woonsocket  in  the  north  of  the  state,  the  proceed- 
ings commenced  with  a  clerical  prayer-meeting  at  the  rec- 
tory, when  appropriate  prayers  from  Bishop  Griswold's  ad- 

*  The  Rt.  Rev.  Dr.  Henshaw. 


RHODE    ISLAND    CONVOCATIONS.  153 

mirable  collection  of  offices  "  for  which  provision  is  not 
made  in  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer"  were  used ;  after 
which  the  session  was  opened  by  the  president  (Dr.  Crock- 
er). The  secretary  then  read  the  minutes  of  the  last  ses- 
sion, and  the  usual  business  was  prosecuted  till  the  hour 
for  dinner,  when  the  clergy  were  elegantly  entertained  at 
the  house  of  the  senior  churchwarden  ;  whence  an  adjourn- 
ment was  made  to  the  church,  where  full  service  was  held, 
and  a  sermon  preached  by  Dr.  Vinton.  Another  service 
was  held  in  the  evening,  when  the  Rev.  James  Pratt,  rector 
of  Westerly,  preached.  Mr.  Pratt  is  a  native  of  the 
south,  an  effective  preacher,  and  one  of  the  most  indefati- 
gable labourers  in  the  American  field.  He  has  since  the 
period  of  which  I  write  received  promotion  to  the  important 
parish  of  St.  Stephen's,  Portland,  Maine. 

On  each  succeeding  day  the  order  of  proceedings  was 
nearly  the  same.  The  Convocation  transacted  business,  af- 
ter early  matins  in  the  church,  during  the  morning,  and 
held  public  service  in  the  afternoon  and  evening  ;*  the  duties 
of  the  altar  and  pulpit  being  divided  between  the  attending 
clergy.  The  church  was  filled  on  each  occasion,  and  great 
excitement  was  manifested  to  hear  the  closing  sermon  by 
the  eloquent  rector  of  St.  Michael's,  Bristol. 

During  the  intervals  of  worship,  I  took  several  walks  in 
the  town  and  neighbourhood.  It  lies  on  the  Blackstone 
River,  where  there  are  falls  of  about  twenty  feet,  keeping 
seventeen  factories  for  satinet  and  cotton  in  operation.  The 
situation  of  this  handsome  and  populous  town,  and  the 
quiet  beauty  of  the  scenery  in  the  neighbourhood  draw 
many  visitors  to  it  every  summer.     The  Rev.  Henry  Water- 

*  I  use  these  terms  in  accommodation  to  a  custom  of  questionable  propriety ; 
the  Evening  Prayer  of  the  Church  being  designed  for  the  evening  (i.  e.  sun 
down)  and  no  later.  For  a  public  night  service  only  particular  diocesses  have 
provided  any  form. 


154  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

man,  then  rector  of  the  parish,  has  since  been  removed  to 
the  charge  of  St.  Stephen's  in  Providence. 

The  next  meeting  of  the  Convocation  I  attended  was 
shortly  after  my  taking  Holy  Orders,  when  I  was  admitted 
to  membership,  and  appointed  to  a  station,  recently  organ- 
ized as  a  distinct  parish.  The  bishop,  on  his  way  from  a 
southern  visitation  of  the  diocess,  gave  it  by  his  presence  a 
character  of  unusual  interest ;  especially  as  his  coming  en- 
gagements threatened  to  lengthen  the  period  of  his  expected 
absence  from  that  part  of  it.  As  the  chief  pastor  descend- 
ed from  the  pulpit  after  the  closing  sermon  and  the  apos- 
tolic benediction,  he  was  surrounded  by  his  clergy  and 
many  of  the  congregation,  with  each  of  whom  he  exchang- 
ed a  cordial  farewell.  Like  another  sainted  father  of  the 
American  Church,  bishop  Griswold's  exhortations  and  ex- 
ample "  proved  as  powerful  incentives  to  the  zeal  and  dil- 
igence of  the  clergy  under  his  episcopal  superintendance. 
He  was  the  centre  of  attraction,  and  the  instrument  of  bless- 
edness and  joy  in  his  diocess.  Wherever  he  went  he 
was  received  with  marked  tokens  of  veneration  and  love : 
and  even  at  an  advanced  period  of  life,  when  most  men 
desire  repose  from  public  duty  he  was  always  ready  to 
preach  the  Gospel,  and  to  labour  for  the  salvation  of 
souls."* 

They  cluster'd  round,  that  listening  throng, 

The  parting  hour  drew  nigh, 
And  heighten'd  feeling  deep  and  strong, 

Spoke  forth  from  eye  to  eye. 

For  reverend  in  his  hoary  years, 

A  white  robed  prelate  bent, 
And  trembling  pathos  winged  his  words, 

As  to  the  heart  they  went. 


*  Bishop  Henshaw's  life  of  the  late  Bishop  of  Virginia,  p.  303. 


RHODE    ISLAND    CONVOCATIONS.  155 

He  breathed  the  blessing  of  his  God 

And  full  of  meekness  said ; 
"  Be  faithful  in  your  master's  work 

When  your  old  bishop's  dead. 

"  For  more  than  fifty  year,  my  sons, 

A  Saviour's  love  supreme 
Unto  a  sinful  world  hath  been 

My  unexhausted  theme. 

"  Now  see  the  blossoms  of  the  grave 

Are  o'er  my  temples  spread, 
Oh !  lead  the  seeking  soul  to  him 

When  your  old  bishop's  dead." 

Full  many  a  sleeper  mid  his  dream, 

Beheld  in  snowy  stole, 
That  patriarch-prelate's  stately  form* 

Whose  accents  stirr'd  the  soul. 

The  boats  that  ask  nor  sail  nor  oar, 

With  speed  majestic  glide, 
And  many  a  thoughtful  pastor  leans 

In  silence  o'er  their  side. 

And  while  he  seems  to  scan  the  flood 

In  silver  'neath  him  spread, 
Revolves  the  charge  "Be  strong  for  God 

When  your  old  bishop's  dead." 

*  The  authoress  must  pardon  the  alteration  of  a  word,  well  applied  to  the 
venerable  Bishop  Moore,  to  whom  this — part  only  of  a  beautiful  poem  by  Mrs. 
Sigourney— originally  referred ;  Bishop  Griswold  having  been  remarkable  for 
his  erect  form  till  his  death. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 


MY    FIRST    PARISH. 


In  "  the  boat  that  asks  nor  sail  nor  oar,"  by  which  I  pro- 
ceeded the  following  day  to  my  first  parish  of  Jamestown, 
(the  township  name  of  Cannanicut  Island,)  was  an  estima- 
ble brother  minister  named  De  Wolf,  now  labouring  in 
Illinois  under  Bishop  Chase,  with  whom  I  maintained  a 
frequent  and  most  fraternal  intercourse  during  my  occu- 
pancy of  Jamestown.  His  parish  was  on  the  west  side  of 
Narragansett  Bay,  (an  old  station  established  by  the  Ven- 
erable Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel)  reached, 
as  was  Newport,  by  ferries  which  constantly  plied  between 
Cannanicut  and  the  main  land. 

The  first  Sunday  I  performed  duty  in  the  church  I  was 
somewhat  surprised  at  the  good  attendance  of  the  people, 
having  formed  my  expectations  from  the  scattered  appear- 
1  ance  of  the  dwellings  and  the  distance  of  many  of  them 
from  the  sanctuary.  On  reaching  it  I  found  a  good  num- 
ber arrived ;  and  as  the  hour  for  service  approached, 
chaises,  waggons,  and  saddle  horses  set  down  their  differ- 
ent owners,  while  a  few  stray  parties  of  pedestrians  swelled 
the  concourse  who  gathered  round  me,  and  to  all  of  whom 
I  was  successively  made  known  by  the  old  churchwarden. 
I  was  also  gratified  at  finding  my  island  congregation  very 
ready  in  performing  their  part  of  the  service,  and  closely 
attentive  during  the  sermon. 

I  soon  learnt  that  the  good  attendance  at  church  arose 


MY    FIRST    PARISH.  157 

from  there  being  no  other  place  of  worship,  except  a  small 
chapel  for  quakers,  in  the  island.— The  parish  was  in  fact 
one  of  those  fruit  bearing  branches  of  the  tree  planted 
in  North  America  by  "the  Venerable  Society"  before  men- 
tioned.    Here  the  Rev.  Mr.  McSparran,  an  English  mis- 
sionary sent  out  in  1719,  officiated  alternately  with  other 
stations  on  the  Narragansett  shore,  ministering  to  a  district 
of  country  which  is  now  supplied  with  twelve  churches, 
and  the  same  number  of  clergymen.     Wherever   I  went 
I  found   traces   or  records  of   his  assiduous  labours.      In 
the  old  parish  church  on  Tower  Hill,  supplied  at  this  time 
by  my  friend  De  Wolf,  is  the  original  parish  register  in  Mr. 
McSparran's   hand  writing,  and  a  quantity  of  interesting 
documents;    evidences   of    his   industry   and   carefulness. 
He  was  sustained,  with  the   first   rectors   of   Providence, 
Newport,*  and  Bristol,  till  the  war  of  the  Revolution  by  the 
Society ;  and  from  these  the  Church  in  Rhode  Island  has 
risen  to  its  present  position,  with  twenty-three  churches  and 
clergymen,  and  an  independent  episcopate.! 

It  is  an  opinion  which  I  have  often  heard  expressed,  and 
of  the  truth  of  which  my  observation  during  eleven  years' 
residence  in  the  United  States  thoroughly  convinces  me, 
that  if  ultimately  saved  from  the  worst  effects  of  the  licen- 
tious and  disorganizing  elements  unhappily  at  work  it  will 
be  from   the  counteracting  and  conservative  influence  of 

*  The  Rev.  James  Honeyman,  was  rector  of  Newport  from  1704  to  1749 
t  To  est.mate  the  amount  of  good  accomplished  by  this  veteran  society  the 
oldest  m.ssmnary  society  i„  the  world-would  be  impossible  !  It  now  supports 
three  hundred  missionaries.  If  any  society  have  a  strong  claim  on  the  liberal 
contr.but.ons  of  the  church's  friends,  it  is  this  parent  association;  especially 
when  ,t  ,s  remembered  that  in  Canada  West  alone  there  are  240  townships  each 
equal  to  twenty  average  English  parishes  without  one  clergyman  of  the  church !  - 
In  Austraha  the  b.shop  visited  three  entire  counties,  in  which  there  is  neither 
nnmster  nor  ordmance  of  religion.-Messr,  Glyn  and  Co.,  are  the  London 
bankers  of  the  society. 


158        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

that  church,  which  (despite  all  the  opposition  it  has 
now  to  encounter,)  is  growing  up  so  strong  within  its  bor- 
ders ;  and  every  year  uprooting  in  its  course  the  weeds  of 
error  and  schism.  How  manifest  will  be  the  controling 
Providence  which  in  this  way  promises  to  make  the  Church 
of  England  the  instrument  of  preserving  the  political  ex- 
istence of  the  country  which  the  oppression  of  the  civil 
government  of  England  has  separated  from  her  ;  and  how 
signally  will  the  support  of  the  Church  Apostolic  be  thus 
proved  to  be  essential  to  national  life. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

WITHDRAWAL    FROM    THE    EASTERN    DIOCESS,    AND 
FAREWELL    OF    NEW    ENGLAND. 

The  act  of  parliament  passed  at  Westminster  in  the 
twenty-sixth  year  of  the  reign  of  George  the  Third,  King  of 
Great  Britain,  France,  and  Ireland,  entitled  "  An  act  to 
empower  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  or  the  Archbishop 
of  York,  for  the  time  being,  to  consecrate  to  the  office  of  a 
bishop,  persons  being  subjects  or  citizens  of  countries  out  of 
his  majesty's  dominions"  was  so  little  known,  or  so  little 
heeded  in  some  of  its  restrictive  provisions  till  another  and 
a  more  catholic-framed  statute  was  substituted  in  its  place 
by  the  British  legislature  in  1840,  that  most  persons  were 
either  ignorant  of  its  very  existence,  or  regarded  it  as  a 
dead  letter.  One  American  ordained  clergyman*  was  re- 
ceived through  his  dimissary  into  an  English  diocess,  and 
presented  to  a  living ;  and  all  visiting  England  received  in- 
vitations to  preach,  or  otherwise  officiate  in  the  cathedrals 
and  parish  churches  without  restriction.  I  had  taken  or- 
ders in  ignorance  of  the  statute,  and  in  the  autumn  of  1837, 
urged  by  a  desire  to  see  my  family,  neither  of  whom  could 
be  persuaded  to  join  me  in  America,  I  consulted  Bishop 
Griswold  on  the  step  of  changing  my  ecclesiastical  relations 
by  joining  the  English  Church,  should  I  determine  on  re- 
maining in  my  native  land.  The  bishop's  answer  was  un- 
favourable, though  he  added  that  what  had  been  done 
*  Dr.  G,  E.  Winslowe, 


160  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

(mentioning  Mr.  Winslowe's  case)  might  he  supposed  be  re- 
peated, especially  as  the  existing  restrictions  in  England  on 
American  clergymen  were  unpopular  with  our  clerical 
brethren  of  England.  I  asked  him  if  he  would  give  me  a 
letter  ?  He  said  that  he  would,  if  I  called  the  next  morn- 
ing for  it ;  and  that  if  I  failed  in  my  application  for  priest's 
orders  in  England,  he  should  be  glad  to  welcome  me  back 
to  his  diocess. 

The  next  day  I  received  a  letter  dimissory  from  the  bish- 
op, when  he  renewed  the  expression  of  his  best  wishes  for 

my   success.     He   added,  however,   "Dr.  C and   Mr. 

H speak  very  highly  of  your  success  in  Rhode  Island, 

and  I  think  you  had  better  just  visit  your  family,  and  re- 
turn to  this  country  where  we  are  much  in  want  of  cler- 
gymen." 

On  the  following  Wednesday  (Sept.  27th)  the  Conven- 
tion of  the  Eastern  diocess  assembled  in  Grace  church  New 
Bedford,  when  the  question  of  electing  an  assistant  to  the 
bishop  was  for  the  first  time  brought  regularly  before  the  rep- 
resentatives of  the  diocess.  Out  of  various  propositions 
which  had  been  warmly  discussed  since  the  convention  of 
1836,  the  bishop  gave  his  preference  to  the  one  of  New 
Hampshire  and  Maine  withdrawing,  and  becoming  separate 
diocesses  ;  leaving  him  in  charge  of  Massachusetts  and 
Rhode  Island.  The  Rhode  Island  clergy  seemed,  however, 
to  desire  an  episcopate  of  their  own,  and  the  controversy  af- 
terwards ripened  into  a  fruitful  source  of  bitterness  and 
party  feeling,  which  in  a  special  convention  of  the  Rhode 
Island  diocess  subsequently  held,  was  pointedly  and  severe- 
ly rebuked  by  the  venerable  bishop,  who  feared  not  the  face 
of  man. 

On  the  30th  of  September  I  took  my  leave  of  Newport, 
and  New  England,  though  not  without  lingering  several 


IMPRESSIONS    OF    NEW    ENGLAND.  1G1 

days  after  the  time  at  first  fixed  for  my  departure  with  my 
excellent,  never  to  be  forgotten,  friends  in  Newport,  amongst 
whom  the  pen  involuntarily  traces  the  honoured  names  of 
Hazard,  Collins,  Whitehorne,  Gilliott,  Van  Zandt,  and 
Mumford,  while  the  memory  treasures  the  recollection  of 
many  others. 

My  impressions  of  New  England  from  nearly  four  years 
acquaintance  with  its  shrewd  and  intelligent  people  are  so 
correctly  expressed  in  the  following  lines  by  Halleck,  that  I 
can  only  endorse  them,  and  add  that  the  portraiture,  though 
partially  drawn  in  the  last  stanza,  presents  some  striking 
points  of  resemblance. 

'Tis  a  rough  land  of  earth,  and  stone  and  tree, 
Where  breathes  no  castled  lord,  or  cabin'd  slave  ; 

Where  thoughts  and  tongues,  and  hands  are  bold  and  free. 
And  friends  will  find  a  welcome,  foes  a  grave : 

And  where  none  kneel,  save  when  to  Heaven  they  pray, 

Nor  even  then,  unless  in  their  own  way. 

A  justice  of  the  peace,  for  the  time  being 

They  bow  to,  but  may  turn  him  out  next  year; 
They  reverence  their  priest,  but  disagreeing 

In  price  or  creed,  dismiss  him  without  fear; 
They  have  a  natural  talent  for  foreseeing, 

And  knowing  all  things — and  should  Park  appear 
From  his  long  tour  in  Africa,  to  show 
The  Niger's  source,  they'd  meet  him  with — "  We  know  V 

They  love  their  land  because  it  is  their  own, 

And  scorn  to  give  all  other  reason  why  ; 
Would  shake  hands  with  a  king  upon  his  throne, 

And  think  it  kindness  to  his  majesty ; 
A  stubborn  race,  fearing  and  flattering  none, 

Such  are  they  nurtured,  such  they  live  and  die, — 
All  but  a  few  apostates,  who  are  meddling 
With  merchandize,  pounds,  shillings,  pence  and  pedling : 

But  these  are  but  their  outcasts,  view  them  near 
At  home  where  all  their  worth  and  pride  is  placed ; 
11 


162  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

And  there  their  hospitable  fires  burn  clear, 

And  there  the  lowliest  farm-house  hearth  is  graced 

With  many  hearts  in  piety  sincere, 

Faithful  in  love,  in  honour  stern  and  chaste, 

In  friendship  warm  and  true,  in  danger  brave, 

Beloved  in  life,  and  sainted  in  the  grave. 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

THE    CHURCH    IN    NEW    ENGLAND. RETROSPECT. 

ENCOURAGING    PROSPECT. 

Strange  as  the  assertion  may  appear,  there  is  no  sec- 
tion of  the  United  States  where  the  episcopal  Church  is 
making  more  rapid  progress,  or  where  there  are  more 
agencies  to  assist  its  progress  than  in  the  New  England 
States.  Amongst  all  classes  the  old  "  orthodoxy"  of  the 
puritans  and  their  successors  has  long  grown  into  very  gen- 
eral disrepute  ;  and  it  was  the  opinion  of  the  late  Bishop 
Griswold  that  had  not  the  teachers  of  the  Socinian  heresy 
substituted  their  system  in  its  place,  the  church  would 
now  embrace  the  largest  proportion  of  the  wealth  and  in- 
telligence of  the  community — which  it  will,  notwithstand- 
ing, at  no  distant  day. 

It  is  almost  the  universal  testimony  of  those  attending 
"  unitarian"  places  of  worship  throughout  New  England, 
and  one  that  I  have  repeatedly  heard  expressed,  that  their 
principal  objection  to  the  old  order  of  ministers  is  their 
manner  of  presenting  the  truth,  and  their  habit  of  dwelling 
on  two  or  three  topics  to  the  exclusion  of  others  equally 
important ;  added  to  the  unnatural  system  of  restraint,  and 
of  "  will-worship"  which  they  impose  on  their  flocks.  The 
subtleties  of  any  particular  doctrine,  whether  relating  to  the 
number  of  persons  in  the  Godhead  or  what  not,  (which  few 
of  the  younger  members  of  "  unitarian"  congregations  un- 
derstand or  care  about)  has  little  or  nothing  to  do  with 


164  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

their  preference.  These,  as  they  settle  in  the  world,  fre- 
quently become  "  universalists,"  another  step  towards  infi- 
delity,— or  avowed  deists.  Thus  we  see  that  an  imper- 
fect ecclesiastical  government  though  classed  in  the  "  lib- 
eral" phrase  of  -the  day,  amongst  "  the  non-essentials," 
and  regarded  as  quite  a  "minor"  point  of  difference,  exposes 
the  Christian  community  to  the  inroads  of  infidelity  and 
atheism. 

How  few  of  the  advocates  for  the  congregational  system 
are  aware  of  the  historical  fact  that  their  great  progenitor, 
John  Calvin,  as  well  as  the  founder  of  methodism,  both  ad- 
mitted the  divine  institution  of  episcopacy,  and  its  superi- 
ority as  a  mode  of  Church  government,  and  were  both  the 
advocates  of  liturgical  worship.  In  his  commentary  on  the 
apostolic  Epistle  to  the  Bishop  of  Crete,  Calvin  writes  : — 
"We  learn  from  this  place  that  there  was  not  then  an 
equality  among  the  ministers  of  the  Church ;  but  that 
some  one  had  the  pre-eminence  in  authority  and  coun- 
sel." 

Again  "  It  is  highly  probable  that  St.  James  was  prefect 
of  the  Church  of  Jerusalem."* 

Again  "  He  who  is  made  a  bishop  proceeds  from  God 
himself.  The  office  of  episcopacy  was  established  by  the 
authority,  and  regulated  by  the  laws  of  God"t 

"  But  Calvin  did  not  engraft  episcopacy  on  the  reformed 
continental  Churches"  will  be  the  reply.  "He  gave  up 
prelacy  for  the  doctrines  of  the  gospel." 

True  !  so  far  as  the  first  part  of  the  statement  goes  ;  and 
how  far  his  example  justifies  the  advocates  of  ministerial 
parity  in  this  day  may  be  judged  by  the  other  historical 
fact,  that  with  Bullinger  and  his  fellow  reformers  he  sought 
episcopacy  for  the  continental  Churches  from  the  English 

*  Com.  on  Gal.  ii.  9. 

t  Letter  to  a  friend— Durell's  View  of  the  For.  Ref.  Churches,  p.  162. 


THE    CHURCH     IN    NEW    ENGLAND.  165 

prelates,  which  scheme  was  frustrated  by  Bishops  Bonner 
and  Gardiner,  much  to  the  grief  afterwards  of  Queen 
Elizabeth  !* 


*  The  following  is  from  Strype's  Life  of  Archbishop  Parker  p.  138  etc. 

"And  this  is  the  account  of  the  popish  clergy's  letter  to  the  archbishop,  and 
his  behaviour  thereon.  There  was  another  letter  this  year  sent  to  him  from  the 
hands  of  a  great  divine,  but  of  another  temper  and  for  another  and  better  end  : 
namely  from  John  Calvin,  the  great  Reformer,  importing,  how  he  rejoiced  in 
the  happiness  of  England ;  and  that  God  had  raised  up  so  gracious  a  Queen  to 
be  instrumental  in  propagating  the  true  faith  of  Jesus  Christ,  by  restoring  the 
gospel  and  expelling  idolatry,  together  with  the  Bishop  of  Rome's  usurped  be 
power.  And  then  made  a  serious  motion  of  uniting  Protestants  together,  [as  he 
had  done  before  in  King  Edward's  reign.]  He  entreated  the  archbishop  to  pre- 
vail with  Her  Majesty  to  summon  a  general  assembly  of  all  the  Protestant  clergy, 
wheresoever  dispersed ;  and  that  a  set  form  and  method  [i.  e.  of  Public  Service, 
and  Government  of  the  Church]  might  be  established,  not  only  within  her 
dominions,  but  also  among  all  the  Reformed  and  Evangelic  Churches  abroad. 
[Anno  1560.] 

"  This  was  a  noble  offer;  and  the  archbishop  soon  acquainted  the  Queen's 
council  with  it.  And  they  took  it  into  consideration,  and  desired  His  Grace  to 
thank  Calvin,  and  to  let  him  know  that  they  liked  his  proposals,  which  were 
fair  and  desirable ;  yet,  as  to  the  government  of  the  Church,  to  signify  to  him 
that  the  Church  of  England  would  still  retain  her  episcopacy.  This  was  a  great 
work,  and  created  serious  thoughts  in  the  archbishop's  mind,  for  the  framing  a 
proper  manner  to  set  it  on  foot.  But  he  had  considered  but  a  little  while  of 
these  matters  when  news  arrived  at  court  that  Calvin  was  dead. 

"  And  how  Calvin  stood  affected  in  the  said  point  of  episcopacy,  and  how 
readily  and  gladly  he  and  other  heads  of  the  Reformed  Churches  would  have 
received  it,  is  evident  enough  from  his  writings  and  epistles.  In  his  book  "  Of 
the  Necessity  of  Reforming  the  Church,"  he  hath  these  words:  "  Talem  nobis 
hierarchiam  exhibeant,"  &c.  "  Let  them  give  us  such  an  hierarchy,  in  which 
bishops  may  be  so  above  the  rest,  as  they  refuse  not  to  be  under  Christ,  and 
depend  upon  Him  as  their  only  head ;  that  they  maintain  a  brotherly  society, 
&c.  If  there  be  any  that  do  not  behave  themselves  with  all  reverence  and  obe- 
dience towards  them  there  is  no  anathema,  but  I  confess  them  worthy  of  it !" 
But  especially  his  opinion  of  episcopacy  is  manifest  from  a  letter  he  and  Bullin- 
ger,  and  others,  learned  men  of  that  sort,  wrote,  anno  1549,  to  King  Edward 
VI.  offering  to  make  him  their  defender,  and  to  have  bishops  in  their  Churches 
for  better  unity  and  concord  among  them  :  as  may  be  seen  in  Archbishop  Cran- 
mer's  Memorials;  and  likewise  by  a  writing  of  Archbishop  Abbot,  found  among 


166        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

"Calvin,"  writes  his  friend  Monsieur  Daille,  "honoured 
all  bishops  that  were  not  subjects  of  the  pope ;  such  as 
were  the  prelates  of  England.     We  confess  that  the  foun- 


the  MSS.  of  Archbishop  Usher;  which,  for  the  remarkableness  of  it,  and  the 
mention  of  Archbishop  Parker's  papers,  I  shall  here  set  down  ; 

"  Perusing  some  papers  of  our  predecessor,  Matthew  Parker,  we  find  that 
"  John  Calvin  and  others  of  the  Protestant  Churches  of  Germany  and  elsewhere, 
"  would  have  had  episcopacy  if  permitted;  but  could  not,  upon  several  ac- 
counts, partly  fearing  the  other  princes  of  the  Roman  Catholic  faith  would 
"  have  joined  the  emperor  and  the  rest  of  the  popish  bishops,  to  have  depressed 
"  the  same ;  partly  being  newly  reformed,  and  not  settled,  they  had  not  sufficient 
"  wealth  to  support  episcopacy,  by  reason  of  their  daily  persecutions.  Another, 
"and  a  main  cause,  was,  that  they  would  not  have  any  popish  hands  laid  over 
"  their  clergy.  And  whereas  John  Calvin  had  sent  a  letter,  in  King  Edward 
"  the  VI. 's  reign,  to  have  conferred  with  the  clergy  of  England  about  some 
"  things  to  this  effect,  two  bishops,  viz.  Gardiner  and  Bonner,  intercepted  the 
"same;  whereby  Mr.  Calvin's  offerture  perished ;  and  he  received  an  answer, 
"as  if  it  had  been  from  the  reformed  divines  of  those  times,  wherein  they  checked 
"  him  and  slighted  his  proposals ;  from  which  time  John  Calvin  and  the  Church 
"of  England  were  at  variance  in  several  points:  which,  otherwise,  through 
"God's,  mercy,  had  been  qualified,  if  those  papers  of  his  proposals  had  been 
"  discovered  unto  the  Queen's  Majesty  during  John  Calvin's  life.  But  being 
"  not  discovered  until  or  about  the  sixth  year  of  her  Majesty's  reign,  Her  Ma- 
"  jesty  much  lamented  they  were  not  made  sooner ;  which  she  expressed  before 
"her  Council  at  the  same  time,  in  the  presence  of  her  great  friends,  Sir  Henry 
"  Sydney  and  Sir  William  Cecil." 

Nor  does  Calvin  stand  alone,  with  respect  to  the  general  proposition,  as  to 
the  necessity  of  maintaining  episcopacy.  Melancthon  has  thus  affirmed — "I 
know  not  with  what  face  we  can  refuse  bishops,  if  they  will  suffer  us  to  have 
purity  of  doctrine." 

"Peter  Bucer  another  presbyterian,  wrote  thus:  "  By  the  perpetual  observ- 
ance of  the  Church,  even  from  the  apostles  themselves,  we  see  it  seemed  good 
to  the  Holy  Ghost  that  among  the  presbyters  to  whom  the  charge  of  the 
Church  is  especially  committed,  one  should  have  the  singular  charge  of  the 
Church,  and  in  that  charge  and  state  govern  others:  for  which  reason  the  name 
of  BISHOP  was  conferred  upon  these  chief  governors  of  the  Church." 

"  Chamier,  a  French  Protestant  divine,  Professor  of  Divinity  at  Montaubon, 
and  who  drew  up  the  edict  of  Nantes,  having  admitted  that  immediately  after 
the  decease  of  the  apostles,  "began  the  difference  between  a  bishop  and  a  pres- 
byter," adds  immediately,  as  if  correcting  himself: — "  What !  the  thing  itself  be- 


THE  CHURCH  IN  NEW  ENGLAND.         1G7 

dation  of  their  charge   is  good  and  lawful,  established  by 
tJw  apostles  according  to  the  command  of  Christ." 

And  Calvin  himself  writes  again,  "  If  they  will  give  us 


gan  in  the  very  time  of  the  Apostles,  or  rather  proceeded  from  them." — {Mills 
History  of  the  Christian  Priesthood,  Page  336.) 

"  Another  Presbyterian,  Le  Clerc,  the  Dutch  Arminian  divine,  and  eulogist  of 
the  learned  layman  Grotius  says  "I  have  always  professed  to  believe  that  epis- 
copacy is  of  Apostolical  Institution,  and  consequently,  very  good  and  very  law- 
ful ;  that  man  had  no  manner  of  right  to  change  it  in  any  place,  unless  it  was 
impossible  otherwise  to  reform  the  abuses  that  crept  into  Christianity  ;  that  it 
was  justly  preserved  in  England,  where  the  Reformation  was  practicable  with- 
out altering  it:  that,  therefore,  the  protestants  in  England,  and  in  other  places, 
where  there  arc  bishops,  do  very  ill  to  separate  from  that  discipline ;  and  they 
would  do  still  worse  in  attempting  to  destroy  it,  in  order  to  set  up  presbytery, 
fanaticism,  and  anarchy.  Things  ought  not  to  be  turned  into  a  chaos,  nor  peo- 
ple seen  everywhere,  without  a  call,  and  without  learning,  pretending  to  inspi- 
ration. Nothing  is  more  proper  to  prevent  them  than  episcopal  discipline,  as  by 
law  established  in  England;  especially  when  those  that  preside  in  Church  gov- 
ernment are  persons  of  penetration,  sobriety,  and  discretion  " 

"  And  he  further  says,  "  — They  who  without  prejudice  read  what  remains  of 
the  most  ancient  Christian  writers,  know  well  enough  that  the  episcopal  form 
of  Church  government,  such  as  it  is  in  the  southern  parts  of  Great  Britain,  ob- 
tained every  where  in  the  next  age  after  the  Apostles,  whence  we  may  collect 
that  it  is  an  Apostolic  institution." 

"  To  these  I  add  finally  the  testimony  of  M.  Le  Moyne,  a  preacher  to  the 
Reformed  congregation  at  Rouen,  who  says — "  Truly  I  believe  it  is  impossible 
to  keep  peace  or  order  in  your  Church  without  preserving  episcopal  dignity.  I 
confess  I  know  not  by  what  spirit  they  are  led,  that  oppose  that  government 
and  cry  it  down  with  such  violence;  for,  I  beseech  you  let  us  not  flatter  our- 
selves in  France,  where  we  have  a  presbyterian  government,  that  we  are  not 
subject  to  many  divisions,  which  the  equality  of  pastors  is  not  able  to  compose ; 
and  which  a  synod  consisting  of  equal  persons,  and  of  elders  and  deacons  who 
have  often  but  little  skill  in  ecclesiastical  government,  is  not  able  to  stop ;  be- 
cause the  authors  of  the  evil  hold  themselves  to  be  of  equal  power  with  those 
that  are  of  prime  note  and  despise  them  that  are  ordinarily  employed  to  heal 
those  distempers.  It  is  episcopacy  which  upholds  the  Lutheran  Churches ;  for 
in  Denmark,  and  Sweden,  they  are  very  quiet  under  episcopal  discipline,  and 
seldom  are  seen  to  slander  and  tear  each  other. — From  the  Rev.  F.  A.  Glover's 
Patriarchate." 

M.  Le  Moyne's   opinion  would  have  been   strengthened   had  he   lived  to 


168  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

an  hierarchy  in  which  the  bishops  have  such  a  pre-eminence 
as  that  they  do  not  refuse  to  be  subject  unto  Christ  &c, 
then  I  will  confess  that  they  are  worthy  of  all  anathemas, 
if  any  such  shall  be  found,  who  will  not  reverence  it,  and 
submit  themselves  to  it  with  the  utmost  obedience."* 

Strong  language  this,  which  no  English  churchman  I 
think,  even  under  the  shadow  of  Oxford  (which  can  hardly 
be  supposed  to  be  more  moderate  than  Geneva  on  the  sub- 
ject of  episcopacy)  would  be  found  to  employ. 

Yet  what  has  been  the  history  of  the  Church  in  Switzer- 
land ? — what  is  the  present  degree  of  doctrinal  purity  in 
Geneva?  Has  it  extended  beyond  its  first  borders,  and 
planted  the  standard  of  the  Cross  in  other  parts  of  the 
world!  Alas  no! — "It  has  done  nothing  to  spread  the 
knowledge  of  a  Redeemer  beyond  its  own  limits — it  has 
utterly  failed  to  sustain  within  itself  the  saving  doctrines 
of  the  Gospel."t 

Nor  can  I  forbear  adding  the  testimony  of  one  of  New 
England's  sons,!  on  the  history  and  present  aspect  of  Con- 
gregationalism in  those  states,  and  throughout  America  : — 

"  How  has  the  faith  of  the  gospel  been  preserved  in  the 
keeping  of  the  Congregationalist  Church  here  ?  In  what 
part  of  this  great  nation  has  it  planted  itself  out  of  New 
England  ?  What  have  been  the  fruits  of  its  production  ? 
I  must  here  premise,  that  I  have  it  not  in  my  heart  to  say 
one  word  that  should  give  just  offence  to  this  respectable 
denomination.  I  have  in  it  friends  I  exceedingly  love  and 
respect ;  I  honour  and  admire  the  piety  and  zeal  for  reli- 

witness  the  present  state  of  religious  parties  in  Scotland  and  Switzerland. — 
Author. 

*  De  Necessitate  Reformandarum  Eeelesiarum. 

t  The  Hon.  Edward  Newton  of  Boston. 

I  lb.  In  a  speech  before  the  American  Church  Board  of  Missions,  at  Grace 
Church,  Boston. 


THE    HON.    MR.    NEWTON.  169 

gion,  so  many  among  it  have  exhibited  ;  but  I  cannot  close 
my  eyes  upon  the  defectiveness,  and  mischievous  workings 
of  its  system,  and,  on  an  occasion  like  the  present,  when  I 
am  called  upon  to  enforce  the  claims  of  the  Church  of 
which  I  am  a  member,  it  is  both  my  right,  and  my  duty,  to 
show  its  superiority,  as  well  by  contrast  and  comparison,  as 
by  the  exhibition  of  its  own  inherent  merits.  I  must  not, 
therefore,  be  charged  with  wilful  and  unnecessary  offence, 
in  the  prosecution  of  a  warrantable  and  legitimate  object. 
I  entertain  no  unkindly  feeling  towards  any  body  of  Chris- 
tians upon  earth. 

"  The  origin  of  the  Congregational  Church  in  this  coun- 
try is  well  known ;  fleeing,  professedly  from  persecution  in 
the  old  world,  it  established  itself  in  the  new,  and  closed 
forthwith  the  door  against  every  competitor.  It  brought  to 
its  aid  the  entire  strength  of  the  civil  power,  and  the  no 
less  powerful  agency  of  prejudice  and  resentment ;  though 
a  fugitive  itself  from  alleged  persecution,  it  became  a  stern 
and  unhesitating  persecutor  of  others,  and  that  too,  in  a 
day  of  extended  light  and  liberality.  Nevertheless  it  could 
not,  and  it  has  not  extended  itself  beyond  its  original 
limits  ;  it  could  not  and  it  has  not  maintained  entire  its 
doctrines  and  authority  therein  ;  it  has  given  way,  by  de- 
grees, to  every  species  of  attack,  until  made  to  swarm  with 
almost  every  imaginable  error.  Notwithstanding  its  as- 
sumed claims  to  scriptural  authority,  notwithstanding  its 
possession  of  the  exclusive  influence  of  the  civil  power  to 
enforce  its  claims,  it  has  declined,  and  manifests  increasing 
symptoms  of  still  further  decay.  How  seldom  do  we  hear 
of  a  new  "  orthodox  congregational  church"  being  erected 
in  any  of  our  towns  ! — who  witnesses  this  denomination  ex- 
tending itself  in  any  part  of  our  broad  dominion  out  of 
New  England  ? — Can  such  an  instrumentality,  then,  be  of 
divine  appointment  ?     Again,  has  she  preserved — does  she 


170  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

maintain  uniformly,  her  own  original  standards  of  faith  ? — 
Look  at  her  "  Covenant,"  established  in  this  very  city  in 
the  year  1680,  after  most  mature  deliberation,  and  inquire 
who  acknowledges  it  now,  or  if  any  of  its  individual  mem- 
bers do,  who  preach  it  from  the  pulpit  ? — Who  maintains  it 
publicly  ? — Who  is  honest  enough,  and  bold  enough  to 
dare  to  do  so  ? — Can  such  be  the  accredited  agent  of  a 
Master,  the  same  yesterday,  to-day  and  forever,  with 
whom  is  no  variableness,  nor  shadow  of  turning  ?  The 
age  of  miracles  is  past ;  the  age  for  God's  direct  interposi- 
tion in  the  affairs  of  men  is  alike  gone  by  ;  he  intends 
now,  as  is  most  apparent,  to  accomplish  all  his  designs  on 
the  earth  through  human  agency  ;  he  has  done  all  by  di- 
rect revelation  to  his  vineyard  that  can  be  done  for  it ;  and 
now  it  remains  for  men  to  work  out  the  appointed  salva- 
tion, always  in  entire  dependence  upon  divine  grace.  Will 
a  weak  and  inefficient  confederacy  then,  such  as  the  con- 
gregational society  is,  be  competent  to  such  a  service  ? — 
Has  the  like  been  effectual  for  any  great  and  good  end,  for 
any  length  of  time  even  ?  No,  sir,  it  cannot ! — it  may  en- 
dure for  awhile,  and  do  good  for  a  short  period  in  'particu- 
lar states  of  society,  as  we  have  seen  it  do — but  to  accom- 
plish and  sustain  permanent,  lasting  good,  other  systems 
are  necessary.  This  may  be  shown  by  a  reference  to 
facts : — Fifty  years  ago  there  were  as  many  "  orthodox 
congregational"  ministers  in  this  commonwealth  as  there 
are  now.  I  have  no  means  of  procuring  a  precise  and  en- 
tirely accurate  statement  on  this  head,  but  I  have  reason  to 
think  I  am  much  within  the  limits  of  the  truth  in  this  par- 
ticular, because  I  hear  it  frequently  and  confidently  affirmed, 
that  one-half  of  the  churches  of  this  order  that  were  or- 
thodox fifty  years  ago  are  the  reverse  now. — Then  let  it  be 
considered  that,  within  fifty  years  the  population  of  this 
commonwealth  has  more  than  doubled.     During  this  time, 


THE    HON.    MR.    NEWTON.  171 

this  sect  has  put  forth  all  its  energies  to  sustain  itself.  It 
has  organized  innumerable  agencies  to  suit  its  ends — 
caused  the  laws  of  the  commonwealth  to  be  modified  to 
render  itself  more  popular, — effected  the  repeal  of  that 
most  righteous  article  of  our  constitution,  which  compelled 
every  man  to  support  the  public  worship  of  Almighty  God 
according  to  his  ability,  because  it  seemed  to  operate 
against  its  influence, — promoted  those  religious  excitements 
which  have  led  to  such  frightful  extravagancies,  and  left 
such  fearful  results  in  their  train.  Still  its  object  is  unat- 
tained  :  it  does  not  increase  either  in  numbers,  or  in 
poiver,  or  in  spirituality,  but  the  reverse.  Sir,  it  gives  me 
no  pleasure  to  lay  these  statements  before  you.  I  do  it 
only  under  a  strong  sense  of  duty,  and  for  just  and  high 
considerations. 

'•  Compare  now  the  Episcopal  Church  through  the  same 
period.  Fifty  years  ago,  the  Episcopal  Church  out  of  one 
or  two  of  the  Southern  states,  had  hardly  any  existence  in 
this  country;  there  were  in  the  whole  nation  then,  one 
hundred  and  seventy  of  its  clergy  only.  While  in  this 
period,  the  population  of  the  country  has  more  than  dou- 
bled, and  Congregationalism  has  not  advanced  one  step,  the 
Episcopal  Church  has  added  one  thousand  to  the  number 
of  its  clergy.  While  Congregationalism  is  confined  within 
the  narrow  limits  of  New  England,  the  Episcopal  Church 
has  posted  itself  over  the  whole  length  and  breadth  of  the 
land,  and  is  daily  and  almost  hourly  increasing.  While 
congregationalists  are  divided  and  at  variance  among  them- 
selves, she  is  united  and  harmonious. — She  cannot  be  divi- 
ded. What  she  believed  and  taught  in  1680,  and  from  the 
period  of  the  Reformation,  she  believes  and  teaches  now, 
and  nothing  beside ;  no  essential  error  in  doctrine  or  prac- 
tice has  foil  on- ed  in  her  footsteps.  She  is  subject  to  a  firm 
and  decided,  though  mild  and  moderate  government, — one 


172  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

of  written  laws,  founded  in  reason  and  experience,  just  and 
wise,  complete  in  all  its  parts.  She  has  a  sound  and  scrip- 
tural liturgy,  faithfully  guarded  against  sudden  and  im- 
proper changes,  which  all  the  Christian  world  admires. 
She  has  also  equally  well  guarded,  fixed  and  approved  ar- 
ticles of  faith,  which  every  intelligent  orthodox  Christian 
admits  to  be  scriptural.  She  has  a  body  of  clergy  inferior 
to  none  in  the  country  for  wisdom,  piety,  and  learning  ; 
and,  where  her  churches  have  gone  beyond  the  point  of 
struggle  for  existence,  she  exhibits  the  most  delightful  evi- 
dences of  sound  religious  character  in  her  members  ;  and 
even  within  the  circumscribed  influence  of  her  body  in  our 
own  diocess — yet  in  the  very  spring-time  of  its  existence — 
her  salutary  influence  on  other  denominations,  by  the  so- 
briety, order  and  intelligence  she  manifests,  is  most  deci- 
sive. Add  to  all  this,  she  is  the  most  tolerant,  mild,  and 
forbearing,  towards  those  who  differ  from  her,  of  any  known 
body  of  Christians  on  the  earth.  Can  we  desire  better  evi- 
dences of  her  being  owned  and  blessed  of  God  1 

"This  prodigious  increase  in  the  numbers  and  influence 
of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  these  United  States,  it  behoves 
her  members  most  seriously  to  ponder.  It  has  been  wrought 
in  parts  seemingly  most  unfavourable  to  it, — to  wit,  in  Vir- 
ginia and  in  New  England.  In  the  former,  through  the 
influence  of  infidel  politicians,  and  the  unfaithfulness  of 
the  colonial  clergy,  the  Church  there,  though  powerful  be- 
fore the  war  of  the  Revolution,  became  afterwards  almost 
extinct.  When  the  late  lamented  Bishop  Moore  became  its 
chief  shepherd,  about  twenty-seven  years  ago,  there  were 
less  than  ten  effective  clergymen  in  that  diocess, — now 
there  are  nearly  one  hundred  !  Here  we  see — what  never 
has  been  or  can  be  seen  in  any  denomination  otherwise 
constituted — a  declining  Church  restored,  re-invigorated, 
and  improved.     In  the  whole  of  New  England,  fifty  years 


THE    HON.    MR.    NEWTON.  173 

ago,  there  were  about  thirty  clergy  of  our  Church  only  ; 
now  there  are  over  two  hundred.  In  New  York,  there 
were  then  twenty  clergymen  only  ;  now  there  are  over  three 
hundred.  And  thirty  years  ago,  when  you,  sir,  were  con- 
secrated Bishop  of  the  Eastern  Diocess,  there  were  but 
seventeen  clergy  therein,  and  now  there  are  one  hundred 
and  thirteen  ;*  and  let  it  be  remembered,  that  this  increase 
was  in  places  where  the  most  deep-rooted  prejudices  and 
inveterate  hostility  against  it  prevailed." 

Such  testimony  and  from  such  a  source  is  invaluable ! 

*  The  venerable  Bishop  Griswold  filled  the  chair  on  the  occasion.  In  the 
short  time  since  the  delivery  of  this  address,  the  number  of  clergymen  (regularly 
engaged)  in  the  same  section  of  country  has  increased  to  151. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

NEW  YORK. DR.  MILNOR. DR.  WAINWRIGHT. MR.  COL- 
TON. — THE  TEMPERANCE  SOCIETY. BISHOP  OF  VER- 
MONT. 

On  the  first  Sunday  spent  in  New  York,  I  made  my 
way  in  the  morning  to  St.  George's  church,  to  the  rector  of 
which,  the  late  Dr.  Milnor,  an  English  friend  had  sent  me 
a  letter  of  introduction,  which  I  had  not  hitherto  had  an 
opportunity  of  delivering.  It  proved  to  be  a  communion 
day,  and  the  doctor's  sermon  was  designed  to  guard  his  con- 
gregation against  too  high  or  too  low  views  of  the  sacra- 
ments of  the  Church.  The  former  he  designated  as  "  po- 
pish," and  the  latter  as  tending  to  religious  indifference,  and 
"  practical  infidelity."  His  remarks  under  the  second  head, 
might  be  useful  to  many  who  claim  to  belong  to  the  same 
party  (if  I  must  use  the  term)  in  the  American  Church  of 
which  Dr.  Milnor  was  regarded  as  a  leader,  and  a  high  au- 
thority. 

In  the  afternoon  I  worshipped  in  St.  Thomas's  church, 
Broadway,  in  expectation  of  hearing  the  celebrated  Dr. 
Hawks.  I  was  not  disappointed  in  the  intellectual  gratifi- 
cation I  received,  though  his  place  was  supplied  by  Dr. 
Wainwright  of  Boston,  whom  I  had  frequently  heard  be- 
fore, and  always  with  increased  pleasure.  The  sermon 
(from  the  text  "My  yoke  is  easy  and  my  burden  is  light,") 
was  a  finished  and  elegant  composition,  not  the  less  effec- 
tive from  the  quiet,  unimpassioned  style  of  delivery,  which 
is  natural  to  this  gentleman,  and  from  which  he  should 


CALVIN    COLTON.  175 

never  depart.  "  We  expect  to  find"  says  Dr.  Blair  "  in  the 
compositions  of  one  man  some  prevailing  character  of 
style,  impressed  on  all  his  writing,  which  will  mark  his  par- 
ticular genius  and  turn  of  mind."  The  same  remark  will 
apply  to  the  manner  of  delivery.  An  earnest  or  impassion- 
ed delivery  is  unnatural,  and  fails  altogether  of  producing 
any  but  a  disagreeable  effect  on  the  audience  when  the 
composition  is  neither  concise,  nervous,  or  vehement.  Dr. 
Wainwright's  style  is  not  feeble,  nor  overloaded  with 
finery,  but  its  characteristics  are  elegance  and  diffuseness  ; 
these  are  well  adapted  to  pulpit  oratory  in  the  city  congre- 
gations of  the  higher  classes,  amongst  whom  his  labours 
are  confined,  and  in  which  sphere  he  is  eminently  useful. 
A  court  preacher,  if  by  the  term  is  understood  a  sycophant- 
ic time-server,  he  is  not.  His  rebukes  and  exposures  of 
the  vices  of  the  rich  are  frequent  and  pointed :  and  his  fear- 
less defence  on  a  late  memorable  occasion  of  what  he  holds 
to  be  a  point  of  orthodoxy,  as  well  as  a  fact,*  against  a 
host  of  incidious  opponents  both  from  within  and  without 
the  Church,  and,  with  about  three  exceptions,  the  whole 
press  of  the  country,  religious  and  secular,  prove  him  to  be 
an  honest  man,  and  one  whose  example  would  have  given 
lustre  to  the  best  days  of  primitive  Christianity. 

On  the  same  day  in  the  ensuing  week  that  Dr.  Milnor 
called  on  me,  I  received  a  visit  from  the  Rev.  Calvin  Col- 
ton,  who  enjoyed  at  that  time  an  extensive  reputation  as  a 
Avriter  of  a  very  versatile  order ;  a  reputation,  however, 
very  unenviable  to  a  mere  popularity-hunter  which  this 
Erastian  divine  unquestionably  is  not.  He  combines  great 
honesty  of  purpose,  with  singular  want  of  prudence,  and 
consequently  exposes  himself  to  as  many  unhandsome 
blows  on  the  head  as  parson  Yorick  received,  though  there 
is  no  fear  of  these  blows  ever  giving  him  his  death  ! 

*  Nulla  Ecclesia  sine  Episcopo. 


176  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

Colton  had  just  raised  a  storm  about  his  ears  in  conse- 
quence of  a  book  which,  though  published  anonymously, 
was  immediately  recognized  as  his  production  in  which, 
under  the  head  of  "  Protestant  Jesuitism,"  he  attacked  the 
various  voluntary  societies  for  professed  moral  reform.  He 
pronounces  them  all  as  bearing  an  uniform  resemblance  to 
the  institution  of  Loyola,  which  he  regards  as  their  great 
prototype ;  these  protestant  crusades  being,  he  says,  "  all 
based  upon  two  leading  arguments,  viz.  alarm  and  neces- 
sity.'''' "  If,"  he  argues  in  his  preface  "  Christianity  is  in- 
deed as  well  established  in  the  world  as  the  author  has  sup- 
posed and  attempted  to  show,  these  alarms  are  groundless ; 
and  if  his  views  of  the  design  and  adequacy  of  the  primitive 
institutions  of  Christianity  are  correct,  these  other  forms  of 
operation  are  not  only  a  diversion,  and  consequent  subtrac- 
tion of  power,  but  must  ultimately  prove  an  embarrassment, 
and  hindrance  to  the  cause,  even  if  preserved  uncorrupt." 

Mr.  Colton's  book,  written  in  a  masterly  style,  contains 
many  truisms ;  but  the  caustic  irony  and  pointed  satire 
which  he  employs  in  attacking  so  large  and  powerful  a  body 
as  come  under  his  lash,  many  of  whom  were  certainly  in- 
nocent of  the  ulterior  objects  which  Colton  attributes  to 
them,  lost  him,  in  a  moment,  hundreds  of  friends,  and  con- 
signed him  to  the  shade  of  very  general  condemnation. 
None  of  his  intimate  acquaintances,  however,  would  think 
the  less  favourably  of  him  ;  knowing  as  they  do,  that  a 
love  of  truth  for  its  own  sake  instigated  the  step  ; — for  sure- 
ly nothing  else  could  induce  any  man,  particularly  a  cler- 
gyman, to  put  forth  such  a  book  as  "  Protestant  Jesuitism," 
under  the  very  shadow  of  the  institutions  he  was  attacking ; 
whose  silent  all-powerful  influence  was  at  work  in  the  com- 
munity of  which  he  was  a  member.  Its  merits  as  a  com- 
position and  an  argument,  were  of  little  avail  in  sheltering 
its  author  from  the  avalanche  of  public  anathema  which  it 


THE    TEMPERANCE    SOCIETY.  177 

instantly  brought  down  on  him,  and  from  which,  until 
the  public  mind  again  becomes  healthy,  he  can  never  hope 
to  rise. 

One  third  of  this  obnoxious  treatise  is  directed  against 
the  "  Temperance  Society."  Mr.  Colton  was  stirred  up  to 
write  his  book  by  a  "  Resolution"  passed  at  some  national 
"  Convention"  of  that  body,  declaring  that  the  use  of  intoxi- 
cating liquor  in  any  quantity,  was  "immoral,"  and  dis- 
qualified a  person  from  the  natural  exercise  of  his  judg- 
ment. Under  the  head  of  "  intoxicating  drinks"  it  will  be 
remembered  the  society  includes  all  wines,  beer,  cider,  or 
any  fermented,  or  artificial  compounds,  exhilirating  or  stim- 
ulating in  their  effects.  "This  resolution,"  remarks  Mr. 
Colton,  "  arraigns  and  condemns  the  best  men  that,  have 
ever  lived — the  best  that  now  live.  It  spares  not  divinely 
inspired  men !  it  blots  the  pages  of  Revelation  ! !  it  im- 
peaches the  moral  character  of  the  Saviour  of  the  world ! ! !" 

True,  undeniably  true  ! — and  such  was  the  testimony  of 
several  clergymen,  present  at  the  convention ;  such  the 
grave  offence  brought  against  the  framers  of  this,  and  other 
similar  "  resolutions"  on  that  occasion  ;  and  the  anticipa- 
tion of  one  of  them  (the  Rev.  Dr.  McMasters)  has  proved 
prophetic.  "  The  effect  [has  been]  to  drive  from  the  ranks 
a  body  of  men  who  are  in  practice  as  temperate  as  them- 
selves." By  putting  a  ban  on  that  high  priest  who  met 
Abraham  ;  by  saying  that  the  "  man  after  God's  own  heart" 
when  inditing  the  104th  Psalm  under  the  inspiration  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  rendered  thanks  to  God  for  what  was  in  itself 
an  evil,  and  could  not  be  taken  without  sin  ;  by  making 
Solomon,  taught  by  the  same  Spirit,  prescribe  it  in  extreme 
cases  of  mental  depression  ;  by  making  our  Saviour  employ 
it  in  working  a  miracle,  and  thus,  as  well  as  by  his  exam- 
ple, incur  moral  guilt ;  by  thus  voting  extreme  resolutions 
[they  have  long  since]  driven  from  their  ranks  numbers 

12 


178        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

who  properly  belonged  to  them.*  Mr.  Colton's  strictures 
under  this  head  were  true  enough ;  and  the  result  has 
shown  most  demonstratively  that,  after  all,  the  Church  of 
God  in  the  world,  is  the  one  great  temperance  society,  is 
the  only  effectual  and  legitimate  instrument  for  reforming 
public  morals,  and  the  one  by  which  the  work  will  ulti- 
mately be  alone  effected.  The  sentiment  it  is  true,  is  scout- 
ed by  infidel  philosophers,  but  it  has  nevertheless  been  long 
gaining  ground  in  the  belief  of  the  community  at  large. 
Deny  it  who  can — it  was  public  opinion  alone,  under  the 
influence  of  Christian  principles  and  teaching,  that  com- 
menced, and  has  effected  the  reformation  already  wrought 
in  the  drinking  habits  of  America.  The  self-constituted, 
irresponsible  body  of  "  temperance  reformers"  who  constitute 
the  office-holders,  editors,  and  agents  of  this  society,  had  no 
more  to  do  with  it,  than  the  fly  on  the  coach-wheel  with 
the  motion  of  the  vehicle,  though  it  exclaimed,  "  see  what 
a  dust  I  make  !"  Public  opinion,  without  the  coercion  of 
any  "  Society"  wrought  the  total  change  which  took  place 
in  the  drinking  habits  of  the  higher  classes  of  Britain  to- 
wards the  end  of  George  III.'s  reign.  The  lengths  of  the 
after  dinner  sittings  are  much  shorter  than  formerly,  and 
the  habit  of  drinking  to  excess  on  such,  or  on  any  occasions, 
has  long  become  essentially  vulgar. 

It  cannot  be  denied,  either,  that  in  America  the  "  tem- 
perance" question  has  become  in  too  many  cases  the  mere 

*  See  speech  of  Dr.  McMasters  at  the  Saratoga  Convention  in  1836.  See  also 
Exodus  xxix.  40.  Judges  ix.  13 ;  xix.  19.  2  Sam.  vi.  19;  xvi.  2.  Nehemiah  v. 
18.  Ps.  civ.  15.  Isaiah  xxvii.  2,  3;  xxix.  9;  Iv.  1.  Daniel  i.  5.  1  Timothy  v. 
23 :  neither  of  which  passages  recommend,  or  sanction  excess  in  drinking,  which 
the  Bible  strongly  condemns ;  but  they  stamp  falsehood  upon  the  total  absti- 
nence "  Resolutions,"  which  is  all  that  is  necessary.  "  Oh,  sir,"  appealed  Pro- 
fessor Potter  now  Bishop  of  Pensylvania  at  the  same  meeting,  "let  us  cling  to 
the  truth — let  us  pursue  an  honest,  straightforward  policy.  Be  assured  of  it 
we  shall  never  triumph  on  any  other  ground." 


THE    TEMPERANCE    SOCIETY.  179 

tool  of  intriguing  politicians,  and  religious  anarchists ;  and 
this  to  an  extent  that  has  made  it  in  some  quarters  abso- 
lutely disreputable.  Its  professed  champions  now  turn  against 
its  first  founders,  whom  they  unsparingly  denounce  in  lan- 
guage which  too  truly  proves  the  truth  of  our  Saviour's 
declaration,  that  it  is  from  within,  from  the  heart,  that 
evil  thoughts,  false  witness,  and  blasphemies,  proceed. 
It  is  too  frequently  the  shield  behind  which  infidelity,  and 
licentiousness  entrench  themselves,  while  aiming  their 
poisoned  darts  at  the  very  guardians  of  public  morals,  and 
the  best  institutions  of  that  country.  Its  system  of  es- 
pionage,  is  another  most  offensive  feature  in  a  community 
calling  itself  "  free."  The  whole  of  each  man's  closet,  lar- 
der, and  cellar  are  laid  open  to  the  inspection  of  the  "  tem- 
perance" agent.  An  inquisitorial  court  sets  up  the  right  of 
analyzing  his  neighbour's  affairs,  and  of  an  inspection  over 
his  private  conduct  "  and  when  once,"  remarks  Mr.  Colton, 
"the  prying  eye  and  usurping  tread  of  impertinence  have 
obtained  access  within  the  sacred  precincts  of  our  domestic 
retreats,  and  dragged  out  the  secrets  of  our  closets  to  view, 
it  is  not  only  less  easy  to  eject  the  intruder,  than  to  have 
barred  the  door  against  him,  but  he  considers  himself  en- 
titled to  that  as  a  right  which  he  gained  by  stealth  and 
violence. 

"The  Church"  boldly  wrote  the  gifted  Bishop  of  Ver- 
mont when  the  question  was  first  mooted,  "  is  the  true 
school  of  virtue,  the  true  temperance  society,  the  true  pre- 
servative from  all  the  vices  which  infest  our  miserable 
world  ;  because  the  almighty  Saviour  is  its  guide,  its  pledges 
are  blest  by  the  power  of  God,  and  its  rewards  are  pre-emi- 
nent in  temporal  comfort  and  eternal  joy.  Away  from 
Christ  you  can  have  no  safety  ;  out  of  his  Church  you  can 
have  no  peace.  If  you  have  not  sought  his  forgiveness, 
through  repentance  and  faith — if  you  have  not  subdued  your 


180  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

rebellious  will,  and  taken  the  blessed  yoke  of  Christ  upon 
you,  and  given  your  inmost  hearts  to  him,  who  bought  you 
to  himself  with  his  own  blood,  I  testify  to  you  that  equal 
destruction  will  be  your  portion.  The  pruning  of  a  single 
branch  is  nothing  when  the  whole  tree  needs  to  be  grafted ; 
the  damming  up  a  single  stream  is  nothing  when  the  foun- 
tain must  be  cleansed ;  and  the  outward  reformation  of 
a  single  vice  is  nothing  while  the  heart  continues  un- 
sanctified."* 

Similar  sentiments  have  been  publicly  expressed  by  sev- 
eral American  bishops,  and  are  doubtless  those  of  all.  The 
following  arguments  by  Bishop  McCoskry  in  exhorting 
some  candidates  for  holy  orders,  before  laying  hands  on 
them,  to  "keep  aloof  from  societies  designed  to  supersede 
the  plans  which  Christ  has  given  for  the  reformation  of 
man,"  commend  themselves  to  the  consciences  and  judg- 
ments of  all  who,  having  the  vows  of  the  ministry  on  them, 
possess  the  moral  courage  to  carry  them  out  into  practice : 

"  You  are  not  to  oppose  any  benevolent  effort  of  men, 
but  only  to  show  that  wherever  you  go,  and  wherever 
found,  you  go,  and  are  found  ready  to  preach  Jesus.  This 
cannot  be  done  in  these  societies  !  A  minister  therefore 
loses  his  influence,  become  secularized,  and  often  times  ex- 
cited in  a  manner  unworthy  of  his  character  and  calling, 
and  soon  fails  in  the  performance  of  the  appropriate  duties 
of  his  office.  The  religious  world  is  full  of  such  in- 
stances."t 

I  heard  Mr.  Colton  several  times  while  in  the  city  and 
preached  for  him  once.  I  was  somewhat  disappointed  by 
his  pulpit  addresses,  which  being  divested  of  that  playful 
wit,  and  that  aptness  in  metaphor,  which  characterise  his 

*  Primitive  Church,  Sec.  VI. 

t  Ordination  Sermon  preached  in  St.  Paul's,  Detroit,  March  20th,  1842, 
p.  39. 


DR.    HIGBEE.  181 

writings,  and  wanting  some  of  the  essentials  of  a  good  elo- 
cution were,  from  their  metaphysical  character,  but  little 
adapted  to  a  mixed  city  audience.  Two  years  afterwards 
he  preached  in  my  own  pulpit  twice,  during  a  week's  visit 
at  York,  when  his  subjects  were  much  better  selected.  Mr. 
Colton  has  long  since  retired  from  parochial  duty,  and  re- 
sides in  New  York.* 

I  was  greatly  charmed  with  a  sermon  I  heard  one  even- 
ing in  St.  John's  church  from  Mr.  (now  Dr.)  Higbee. 
Though  the  preacher  was  very  juvenile  in  appearance,  (the 
consequence  of  an  unbecoming  toilet)  his  discourse  bore 
marks  of  a  mind  well  balanced,  and  a  judgment  fully  ma- 
tured ;  his  language  was  elegant  and  florid  ;  his  descrip- 
tions fresh  and  vivid  ;  at  the  same  time  free  from  that  "  tin- 
sel splendour"  which  frequently  passes  for  eloquence  in 
America,  and  of  which  some  specimen  orations,  and  con- 
gress speeches  are  choice  examples  ! 

I  also,  during  this  visit,  saw  the  Bishop  of  New  York  for 
the  first  time  in  public,  though  he  appeared  to  far  less  ad- 
vantage than  on  several  subsequent  opportunities  I  have 
had  of  hearing  him  preach  ;  the  occasion  being  the  opening 
of  the  diocesan  convention  by  the  usual  address,  a  great 
part  of  which  is  a  mere  journal  of  his  episcopal  acts  during 
the  past  year.  Mr.  Colton  had  previously  made  me  ac- 
quainted with  this  amiable  and  kind  hearted  prelate; 
than  whom,  for  dignity  of  bearing,  suavity,  and  frankness 
of  manners,  there  is  no  member  of  the  American  episcopate 
who  does  the  office  higher  credit. 

An  evening  was  spent  very  agreeably  at  Dr.  Berrian's, 

*  While  these  sheets  are  passing  through  the  press  a  life  of  Henry  Clay  has 
been  announced  from  Mr.  Colton's  pen.  No  one  could  do  better  justice  to  the 
subject.  From  his  political  predilections,  and  a  long  and  intimate  acquaintance 
with  that  distinguished  statesman,  both  the  English  and  American  public  may 
expect  a  rich  treat  in  such  a  biography. 


182        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

the  rector  of  Trinity  parish.  Present  the  Bishop  of  Ver- 
mont, Mr.  Phillips,  rector  of  St.  Luke's,  Catskill,  Mr.  Hig- 
bee,  Dr.  Berrian's  assistant  in  Trinity  parish,  Mr.  Loutrell, 
an  active  and  zealous  layman  of  New  York,  and  several 
clergymen  whom  the  Convention  had  brought  to  the  city, 
on  the  proceedings  of  which  the  conversation  chiefly  turn- 
ed, till  a  book  just  published  by  the  Bishop  of  Vermont, 
contrasting  the  early  and  present  state  of  the  Romish 
Church,  formed  the  topic  of  animated  discussion  and  con- 
gratulation. It  was  one  of  several  volumes  of  great  merit 
and  research,  written  by  this  accomplished  polemick,  and 
has  been  since  republished  in  London,  with  high  commen- 
dations by  the  English  editor  and  British  reviewers.  I  ex- 
pressed my  obligation  to  the  bishop  for  his  book  on  the 
"  Primitive  Church,"  which  I  had  circulated  with  good  ef- 
fect among  my  late  parishioners,  when  he  remarked  that 
his  last  work  had  cost  him  three  times  the  care  and  study. 
This  may  be  well  believed  from  the  number  of  authorities 
quoted,  and  the  necessity  for  the  strictest  accuracy,  in  a 
controversy  with  the  Romish  hierarchy  to  whom  the  second 
volume  is  addressed. 

Bishop  Hopkins  has  since  been  replied  to  by  Dr.  Kenrick, 
the  Roman  Catholic  bishop  of  Philadelphia ;  to  whose 
work  he  published  a  rejoinder,  challenging  Dr.  K.  to  a  pub- 
lic oral  discussion,  on  the  controverted  points,  which  was 
declined.  The  Bishop  of  Vermont,  therefore,  remains 
master  of  the  field. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 


A    SUNDAY    IN    PHILADELPHIA. 

On  every  priest  a  twofold  care  attends 
To  prove  his  talents  and  insure  his  friends 
First,  of  the  first — your  stores  at  once  produce, 
And  bring  your  reading  to  its  proper  use. 
On  doctrines  dwell,  and  every  point  enforce 
By  quoting  much  the  scholar's  sure  resource ; 
For  he  alone  can  show  us,  on  each  head, 
What  ancient  schoolmen  and  sage  fathers  said. 
No  worth  has  knowledge,  if  you  fail  to  show 
How  well  you  studied,  and  how  much  you  know, 
Is  faith  your  subject,  and  you  judge  it  right 
On  theme  so  dark  to  cast  a  ray  of  light ; 
Be  it  that  faith  the  orthodox  maintain, 
Found  in  the  rubric — what  the  creeds  explain. 
Fail  not  to  show  us,  on  this  ancient  faith, 
(And  quote  the  passage)  what  some  martyr  saith, 
Dwell  not  one  moment  on  a  faith  that  shocks 
The  minds  of  men  sincere  and  orthodox  ; 
That  gloomy  faith,  that  robs  the  wounded  mind 
Of  all  the  comfort  it  was  wont  to  find 
From  virtuous  acts,  and  to  the  soul  denies 
Its  proper  due  for  alms  and  charities; 
That  partial  faith,  that,  weighing  sins  alone, 
Lets  not  a  virtue  for  a  fault  atone  ; 
That  starving  faith,  that  would  our  tables  clear, 
And  make  one  dreadful  Lent  of  all  the  year : 
And  cruel  too — for  this  is  faith  that  rends 
Confiding  beauties  from  protecting  friends ; 
A  faith  that  all  embracing,  ichat  a  gloom, 
Deep  and  terrific,  o'er  the  land  would  come! 
What  scenes  of  horror  would  that  time  disclose! 
No  sight  but  misery,  and  no  sound  but  woes! 

Rev.  G.  Crabbe. 

Having  determined  on  a  visit  to  Washington  before  sail- 
ing for  England,  I  left  New  York  on  the  13th  of  October 
in  a  crowded  steamboat,  and  descending  the  bay,  entered 
Staten  Island  Sound,  which  separates  it  from  the  main  land 
of  New  Jersey.     At  South  Amboy,  the  terminating  point 


184  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

of  the  railway  across  New  Jersey,  we  took  the  cars,  and 
pursued  our  way  in  darkness  the  rest  of  the  distance  to 
Philadelphia,  ninety-five  miles,  where  I  was  soon  establish- 
ed in  one  of  the  comfortable  hotels  for  which  "  the  city  of 
brotherly  love"  is  deservedly  famed. 

Dr.  John  A.  Clark  was  at  this  date  one  of  the  most  pop- 
ular preachers  in  Philadelphia  ;  so  having  the  privilege  of 
travellers  to  follow  the  crowd,  I  enquired  the  way  to  St. 
Andrew's  the  next  morning,  which  was  Sunday.  The  ap- 
pearance of  the  streets  through  which  I  passed  greatly  disap- 
pointed me,  after  the  encomiums  I  had  heard  on  the  elegance 
of  this  city.  Architecturally  it  possesses  none ;  unless  the 
exceptions  of  some  public  buildings  are  admitted.  Unifor- 
mity in  the  direction  of  streets,  and  the  size  and  character 
of  houses,  may  answer  the  ends  of  convenience  and  clean- 
liness, but  it  can  scarcely  be  considered  as  a  point  of  beauty. 
A  high  authority  tells  us  that  uniformity  is  only  beautiful 
when  the  thing  constructed  requires  it.  "  A  circle,  a 
square,  a  triangle,  or  a  hexagon"  says  Dr.  Blair,  "  gives 
pleasure  to  the  eye  by  its  regularity  as  a  beautiful  figure,  yet 
a  certain  graceful  variety  is  found  to  be  a  much  more  pow- 
erful principle  of  beauty.  Regularity  seems  to  appear  beau- 
tiful to  us  chiefly,  if  not  entirely,  on  account  of  its  suggest- 
ing the  idea  of  fitness,  propriety,  and  use  ;  which  have  al- 
ways a  more  intimate  connexion  with  orderly  and  propor- 
tioned forms,  than  those  which  appear  not  constructed  ac- 
cording to  any  certain  rule.  *  *  *  *  A  straight  canal 
is  an  insipid  figure  when  compared  with  the  meanders  of  a 
river.  The  apartments  of  a  house  must  be  disposed  with 
regularity  for  the  convenience  of  inhabitants,  but  a  garden 
would  be  disgusting  if  it  had  as  much  uniformity  and  order 
as  a  dwelling  house." 

There  can  be  no  reason  in  the  world  for  laying  out  a  city 
with  more  regularity,  except  in  its  general  plan,  than  a 


PHILADELPHIA.  185 

pleasure  garden.  A  straight  street  may  do  here  and  there 
for  variety's  sake,  and  be  best  adapted  for  the  business  part 
of  a  commercial  town ;  but  crescents,  circuses,  quadrants, 
and  curves,  relieve  the  eye,  and  afford  opportunity  for  dif- 
ferent styles  of  architecture.  The  almost  universal  rule  of 
plain  unparapeted  brick  houses,  wholly  innocent  of  orna- 
ment or  style,  may  harmonize  with  the  quaker  taste  that 
designed  Philadelphia,  but  will  always  disappoint  the  ex- 
pectations of  strangers,  especially  from  abroad,  who  have 
heard  it  described  as  "  the  second  city  in  the  United  States." 
"  Second"  it  may  be  in  size  and  population,  but  in  appear- 
ance, and  beauty  of  situation,  it  is  greatly  surpassed  by  its 
sisters  New  York,  Boston,  Baltimore,  and  Washington. 

Another  disagreeable  feature  in  the  houses  of  Phila- 
delphia are  the  primitive  appendages  of  outside  window 
shutters,  which,  with  the  doors,  lintels,  and  other  wood- 
work, presenting  one  unvarying  covering  of  white  paint,  af- 
ford a  severe  trial  to  the  eyes,  and  mark  at  the  same  time 
the  unambitious  taste  of  the  citizens. 

St.  Andrew's  church,  where  I  first  worshipped,  like  most 
Philadelphia  churches  belonging  to  the  "protestant  episco- 
pal" communion,  appears  better  without  than  within.  It 
is  a  chaste  Grecian  temple,  with  a  row  of  pillars  in  front. 
On  entering  I  found  the  service,  which  was  conducted  by 
an  assistant,  commenced.  The  sermon  was  partly  extem- 
pore, on  the  danger  of  "procrastination  in  religion,"  and 
closed  by  a  fervid  and  high  wrought  appeal  to  the  ';  worldly 
and  the  pleasure  seekers."  I  could  see  at  once  that  the 
preacher  owed  much  of  his  popularity  to  his  delivery,  and 
none  of  it  to  his  style,  or  intellectual  resources.  The 
former  was  striking  and  effective,  giving  weight  to  lan- 
guage and  ideas  generally  common  place,  and  never  bril- 
liant. This  he  made  up  for  by  his  elocutionary  tact,  and 
the  exciting  nature  of  the  topics  introduced.     In  the  flow- 


186  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

ers  of  rhetoric,  and  in  all  the  higher  elements  of  pulpit 
oratory  he  is  said  to  have  been  greatly  surpassed  by  his 
predecessor  Dr.  Bedell,  a  distinguished  light  of  the  Ameri- 
can Church  ;  which,  from  a  perusal  of  the  sermons  of  that 
eminent  divine,  I  am  well  prepared  to  believe.  As  a  writer 
on  subjects  of  experimental  piety,  religious  biography,  etc., 
Dr.  Clark  was,  however,  very  successful,  though  his  looks 
discover  no  genius.  His  attempts  at  description  are  labour- 
ed and  ambitious,  overloaded  with  redundances  of  lan- 
guage, and  emulative  of  pictorial  effect ;  but,  from  the 
many  unnatural  touches  introduced,  and  the  sameness  that 
pervades  his  scenes,  leaving  no  lasting  impress  of  them  on 
the  reader's  mind.  Dr.  Clark's  writings  have  had  their  day 
with  his  career  as  a  preacher,  and  will  add  nothing  to  the 
standard  religious  literature  of  America. 

I  received  a  very  disagreeable  impression  on  this  occa- 
sion from  the  custom  (unpractised  in  old  or  New  England) 
of  turning  the  back  to  the  altar  during  the  prayers.  To 
say  nothing  of  its  gross  irreverence,  it  is  attended  with  noise 
and  great  inconvenience,  both  to  the  kneelers,  and  "non- 
conformists," among  which  class  I  was  compelled  to  class 
myself  during  my  residence  in  the  South,  resting  the  crime 
of  violating  the  rubric  on  those  churchwardens  who,  in 
their  solicitude  for  the  comfort  and  luxurious  accommoda- 
tion of  hearers,  overlook  the  necessary  provision  for  wor- 
shippers. 

In  the  evening  I  accompanied  some  friends  to  St. 
Stephen's  church  in  Tenth  street  a  fine  stone  building  with 
Gothic  decorations,  and  two  octagonal  towers  in  front. 
The  interior  is  for  the  most  part  in  good  taste,  the  walls 
and  wood-work  of  a  sombre  tint,  with  several  marble  mon- 
uments and  tablets.  The  hand  of  innovation,  which  has 
since  the  Revolution  despoiled  and  transformed  nearly  all 
the  other  churches  of  Philadelphia,  has  hitherto  spared  this 


DR.    DUCACHET.  187 

beautiful  temple,  whose  only  defect  is  in  the  chancel  ar- 
rangements, where  the  pulpit,  and  the  Holy  Table,  have 
changed  places,  which  makes  it  bad  for  the  preacher,  and 
bad  for  his  hearers  ;  besides  depriving  the  church  of  an  end 
altar,  to  which — were  the  chancel  arranged  on  ecclesiastical 
principles — the  fine  east  window  of  stained  glass  would  im- 
part an  imposing  effect. 

Dr.  Ducachet,  the  rector  of  the  parish,  who  preached  on 
this  occasion,  was  just  declining  from  the  zenith  of  a  well 
merited  popularity.  To  great  scholastic  acquirements,  and 
a  fine  intellect,  he  adds  the  advantages  of  a  good  address 
clear,  distinct,  and  emphatic  enunciation.  These  attrac- 
tions drew  large  crowds  to  St.  Stephen's  on  his  first  arrival 
in  Philadelphia,  and  still  attach  to  him  his  regular  parish- 
ioners, including  some  of  the  oldest,  and  wealthiest  fami- 
lies in  the  city  ;  but  he  has  long  ceased  to  be  the  lion  of  the 
day,  and  is  now  almost  forgotten  by  many  of  his  former 
admirers. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 


PHILADELPHIA    LIONS. 


Philadelphia  has,  perhaps,  more  historic  associations 
which  make  it  interesting  to  a  foreign  visitor,  than  any 
other  city  or  town  in  the  Union.  One  of  the  first  objects 
which  the  stranger  seeks  is  the  state  house,  in  which  the 
first  congress  of  the  United  States  held  its  deliberations  and 
from  which  the  Declaration  of  Independence  was  read  to 
the  people,  on  July  the  fourth  1776.  The  building  is  a  lit- 
tle more  than  a  century  old,  a  plain  brick  structure,  greatly 
and  deservedly  venerated  by  the  citizens.  The  extensive 
garden  behind  it  is  now  laid  out  as  a  public  square,  and 
with  its  gravelled  walks,  and  avenues  of  trees,  affords  a  de- 
lightful and  favourite  promenade. 

Chesnut-street,  on  which  the  state  house  and  several 
other  public  buildings  front,  is  the  present  fashionable 
street  of  Philadelphia.  The  pavement,  trottoir,  and  shops, 
are  superior  to  that  of  any  other,  and  on  a  fine  day  present 
a  very  animated  appearance,  from  the  number  of  gay 
pedestrians,  and  the  elegance  of  the  equipages.  It  runs, 
like  many  parallel  streets  from  river  to  river,  but  beyond 
Broad-street,  which  crosses  it  a  little  more  than  half  its  en- 
tire length,  the  houses  are  private,  and  the  signs  of  busi- 
ness and  pleasure  cease.  Broad-street  promises  to  form  a 
grand  ornament  to  the  city.  It  runs  from  north  to  south 
through  its  centre,  and  is  113  feet  wide.     It  is  not  yet  half 


PHILADELPHIA    LIONS.  189 

built,  but  mansions,*  churches,  and  public  edifices  are  going 
up  slowly  ;  the  double  row  of  trees  on  each  side  are  pro- 
gressing towards  maturity  ;  and  when  buildings  worthy  of 
the  site  line  its  whole  length,  and  the  dangerous  railway 
tracks  which  temporarily  obstruct  and  disfigure  the  cause- 
way, are  removed,  the  Philadelphians  may  pride  themselves 
on  possessing  the  handsomest  street  in  the  world. 

Near  the  junction  with  Broad-street  stands  the  mint,  a 
fine  marble  edifice  of  the  Ionic  order.  Respectable  visitors 
are  allowed  free  admission  to  it,  and  taken  round  in  single 
parties  by  one  of  the  officers,  who  obligingly  replied  to  my. 
questions,  and  gave  every  necessary  explanation  in  our 
course  through  the  different  rooms.  This  man  would  re- 
gard the  offer  of  a  fee  as  an  insult, — and  in  this  particular, 
we  are  obliged  to  own  the  superiority  of  American  subordi- 
nates over  those  in  our  own  country.  The  free  admission 
which  is  permitted  to  many  public  places  is  not  merely 
nominal,  subjecting  you,  either  to  the  insolent  demands  of 
menials  for  money,  or,  what  is  more  offensive  still,  their 
cringing  importunities,  and  petty  obstructions  against  a 
free  egress  after  the  performance  of  a  trifling  office,  till  the 
fee  is  paid.  In  every  part  of  the  United  States  which  I  visited 
I  found  the  persons  in  attendance  at  public  institutions,  obli- 
ging and  intelligent,  without  the  expectation  of  any  reward. 

The  merchants'  exchange  forms  a  conspicuous  ornament 
in  the  business  suburb  of  the  city.  The  front  elevation  is 
semicular,  with  Corinthian  columns  resting  on  a  high  base- 
ment. The  principal  entrance  opens  into  a  vestibule, 
which  communicates  with  the  city  post-office  and  other 
public  departments.  A  double  staircase  leads  to  a  landing 
which  opens  to  a  splendid  semi-circular  apartment,  richly 

*  And,  unlike  the  rest  of  the  city  with  some  pretensions  to  style  ;  two  in  par- 
ticular are  fine  specimens  of  the  palazzo  style,  arguing  well  for  an  improving 
taste  in  Philadelphia. 


190        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

( 

embellished  with  paintings  and  fresco  work,  the  roof  sup- 
ported by  Corinthian  pillars,  the  floor  composed  of  mosaic. 
Adjoining  this  hall  is  a  large  reading-room,  containing  all 
the  leading  papers  of  the  country,  including  the  Lon- 
don dailies,  and  periodicals.  This  noble  structure  was 
erected  by  the  city  at  an  immense  cost,  the  material  being 
of  the  finest  marble. 

I  reached  the  hotel  about  3  o'clock,  after  a  pretty  exten- 
sive pursuit  of  city  lions,  and  found  the  vestibule  or  hall,  in 
which  is  the  bar,  crowded  with  the  male  inmates,  who  all 
dine  in  ordinary  as  at  New  York  and  Boston,  unless  a  sep- 
arate room  is  requested,  for  which  there  is  an  extra  charge. 
The  company,  which  was  numerous  and  select,  manifested 
unusual  hilarity  after  taking  their  seats  at  the  dinner  table, 
which,  added  to  the  fashionable  toilet  generally  displayed, 
seemed  strangely  in  keeping  with  the  rules  of  deportment 
and  dress  established  by  the  founders  of  this  quaker  city. 
The  dinner  was  cooked  in  the  best  style,  and  exhibited  no 
lack  of  variety  in  the  viands. 

The  third  course,  of  which  the  pastry  forms  a  part,  is 
not  particularized  in  the  bill  of  fare.  This  third  course 
being  "  the  dessert"  at  all  American  inns,  fruit,  sweetmeats 
etc.  form  part  of  it.  An  English  dessert  (after  the  removal 
of  the  cloth)  I  have  never  known  except  at  private  houses, 
nor  is  it  common  in  those. 

I  spent  the  evening  at  the  museum,  which  was  then  ex- 
hibiting in  the  buildings  of  the  arcade,  a  handsome  struc- 
ture of  marble,  with  a  double  avenue,  fronting  on  Chesnut 
street.  Amongst  the  paintings  were  many  well  executed 
portraits  of  public  characters.  The  whole  collection  of 
curiosities  with  large  additions,  now  occupy  a  more  com- 
modious receptacle  in  a  building  of  ample  dimensions, 
since  erected  for  the  purpose,  which  is  also  used  for  con- 
certs a  la  Musard. 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 

JOURNEY    TO    WASHINGTON,   AND    ALEXANDRIA. INDIAN 

CHIEFS. 

The  next  morning  I  pursued  my  way  southward  by  the 
steamboat,  which  conveyed  us  down  the  Delaware.  The 
view  of  the  city  would  be  very  fine  from  the  river  but  from 
the  absence  of  spires  and  lofty  public  edifices.  The  first 
place  of  any  note  that  we  passed,  after  leaving  Philadelphia, 
was  Fort  Mifflin,  about  seven  miles  distant,  where  the  river 
Schuylkill  joins  the  Delaware.  It  was  the  principal  defence 
of  the  latter  during  the  late  war,  but  is  now  going  to  decay. 
Ten  miles  further  on  Chester  appears  in  sight  on  the  right 
bank,  one  of  the  first  settled  towns  in  the  state,  and  still 
bearing  many  marks  of  antiquity.  We  were  landed  at 
Wilmington  and  transferred  to  the  railway  cars. 

The  railroad  crossed  the  peninsula  which  forms  the  state 
of  Delaware,  to  Havre  de  Grace,  where  we  passed  the 
mouth  of  the  far  famed  Susquehanna  by  ferry.  On  the  op- 
posite bank  we  resumed  our  seats  in  cars  of  a  handsomer 
construction,  for  Baltimore,  the  chief  city  of  Maryland,  110 
miles  from  Philadelphia. 

This  fine  city  lies  at  the  head  of  Patapsco  Bay,  fourteen 
miles  from  the  Chesapeake  and  two  hundred  from  sea :  it 
is  justly  admired  for  its  situation  and  its  numerous  archi- 
tectural beauties.  Its  size  is  the  same  as  Boston,  and  less 
than  half  that  of  Philadelphia.  After  a  hasty  dinner,  I 
took  my  place  in  the  cars  for  Washington,  which  city,  forty 
miles  distant,  I  reached  by  eight  o'clock. 


192  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

A  crowd  of  blacks  came  round  us  on  alighting  from  the 
cars,  each  offering  to  carry  the  luggage,  and  clamourously 
urging  the  superiority  of  the  respective  hotels  to  which  they 
were  attached.  These  were  chiefly  slaves,  yet  who  would 
suppose  it  from  their  comfortable  sleek  appearance,  and  the 
look  of  contented  glee  that  marks  every  face  ?  Consigning 
my  portmanteau  to  one  of  the  sable  tribe,  I  accompanied 
him  along  a  wide  street,  bordered  with  trees,  to  an  hotel, 
where  I  found  comfortable  entertainment,  and  pleasant 
companionship  amongst  the  other  lodgers  during  my  stay  in 
the  city. 

It  happened  most  unfortunately  that,  delaying  my  de- 
parture from  Philadelphia  till  Tuesday,  I  lost  the  opportu- 
nity of  seeing  Congress  assembled,  as  it  had  the  very  day 
of  my  arrival  adjourned,  after  an  extra  session.  The  mem- 
bers were  all  gone,  or  on  the  eve  of  departure,  and  I  walked 
through  the  deserted  chambers  of  the  capitol  the  next  morn- 
ing with  feelings  of  keen  regret.  This  capitol  is  well  wor- 
thy of  its  national  design,  being  the  finest  building  I  have 
yet  seen  in  the  country,  and  equalled  by  few  edifices  in  the 
world.  It  stands  on  an  elevation,  overlooking  the  city  and 
the  broad  expanse  of  the  Potomac  river.  Its  length  is  350 
feet,  and  its  height  145.  An  advanced  portico  on  the  front 
of  the  centre  building,  is  ornamented  with  a  triple  row  of 
beautiful  marble  columns.  The  wide  stone  steps  approach- 
ing this  entrance  conduct  to  the  rotunda,  95  feet  in  diame- 
ter, ornamented  by  superb  reliefs,  and  large  paintings  by 
native  artists,  representing  some  of  the  principal  events  in 
the  national  history.  South  of  the  rotunda,  occupying  that 
wing  of  the  building,  is  the  chamber  of  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives, a  semi-circular  hall,  with  columns  supporting 
the  roof.  The  senate  chamber  occupies  the  north  wing, 
and  below  the  senate  chamber  is  the  supreme  court  of  the 
United  States ;  there  being,  besides  these  rooms,  some  sixty 


ALEXANDRIA.  193 

or  seventy  offices  for  committees,  congress  officers,  refresh- 
ments, etc.  The  grounds  round  this  noble  pile  of  buildings 
cover  more  than  twenty  acres,  tastefully  laid  out  in  walks 
and  shrubbery. 

At  noon  I  took  the  steamboat  for  Alexandria,  a  town  six 
miles  further  down  the  Potomac,  on  the  opposite  side.  The 
river  at  Washington  is  very  wide,  and  deep  enough  for  the 
largest  ships ;  notwithstanding  which,  and  the  generally 
excellent  position  of  Washington  for  commercial  purposes, 
it  has  as  yet  made  but  little  advances  as  a  trading  port ; 
the  number  of  inhabitants  being  only  twenty  thousand, 
though  the  plan  of  the  city,  if  carried  out,  would  be  adapted 
to  a  population  of  a  million  souls.  The  trade  of  Alexan- 
dria is  considerable  for  its  size.  It  lies  pleasantly  at  the 
foot  of  verdant  hills,  and  is  built  with  neatness  and  regu- 
larity. I  took  tea  with  the  amiable  rector  of  St.  Paul's, 
who  is  much  beloved  by  his  numerous  body  of  parishioners. 
I  had  several  occasions  afterwards  of  renewing  my  ac- 
quaintance with  this  gentleman  and  his  accomplished  lady 
in  New  York.  He  has  since  declined  the  episcopate  of 
Alabama,  which  was  tendered  to  him  by  the  Convention 
of  that  diocess. 

In  the  neighbourhood  of  Alexandria  is  a  flourishing  theo- 
logical seminary  for  the  diocess  of  Virginia,  in  which  it 
stands,  of  which  the  bishop  is  ex  officio,  president, — though 
more  properly  the  visitor,  as  he  resides  at  Millwood,  in 
Clarke  county.  The  professorships  are  those  of  Ecclesias- 
tical History  and  Pulpit  Eloquence,  [Rev.  Dr.  May]  Syste- 
matic Divinity,  [Rev.  Dr.  Sparrow]  and  Sacred  Literature 
[Rev.  Joseph  Packard,  A.  M.].  Besides  this  seminary,  the 
diocess  has  an  Education  Society,  and  two  High  Schools. 

In  the  morning  I  returned  to  Washington,  and  spent  the 
day  in  viewing  the  churches,  and  other  public  buildings. 
There  are  four  of  the  former,  viz.  St.  John's,  Trinity,  Christ 

13 


194  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

Church,  the  Epiphany,*  and  three  in  the  adjoining  suburb 
of  Georgetown.  Besides  these  there  are  about  fifteen 
places  of  worship  for  different  religious  denominations.  At 
Georgetown,  the  Romanists  have  a  seminary  under  Jesuit 
tuition,  conducted  by  twenty  teachers,  and  accommodating 
140  pupils.  Columbian  College  is  a  baptist  institution,  in 
which  are  nine  teachers,  and  fifty  pupils. 

Friday  20th. — Mr.  Hawley,  the  rector  of  St.  John's, 
having  offered  to  introduce  me  to  the  President,  we  reached 
"the  White  House"  about  noon,  where  I  found  to  my 
chagrin  that  a  special  despatch,  just  received,  had  required 
the  attendance  of  the  Secretary  of  State,  with  whom  he 
was  in  consultation.  The  attendant,  to  whom  my  guide's 
person  was  familiar,  invited  us  into  the  drawing-room,  and 
then  conducted  us  through  the  principal  apartments  of  the 
executive  mansion,  which  is  in  all  respects  handsomely 
appointed.  We  then  visited  the  offices  of  the  various  de- 
partments of  state.  In  one  of  these  is  a  gallery  of  Indian 
portraits,  the  original  Declaration  of  Independence,  treaties 
with  foreign  powers,  and  other  curiosities. 

Later  in  the  day,  Mr.  Hawley  introduced  me  to  a  depu- 
tation of  Indians  from  the  tribes  of  the  Sauks,  Foxes,  Sioux, 
and  Ioways.  The  first  two  are  a  finer  looking  race  than 
the  others,  with  more  expressive  features.  I  succeeded, 
without  the  interpreter  (who  was  absent)  to  hold  something 
of  a  conversation  with  the  chieftains  Kee-o-kuk  and  Black 
Hawk  who  represented  their  two  tribes ;  the  former  was 
accompanied  by  his  son  "  Whistling  Thunder."  The  whole 
party  were  familiar  with  my  friend's  person,  and  gathered 
round  us  during  our  difficult  dialogue,  which  was,  of  course, 
carried  on  by  dumb  gesture.  At  its  close  I  drew  out  a  shirt 
pin,  and  presented  it  to  Kee-o-kuk.  He  examined  it  very 
minutely,  and  after  handing  it  round  to  the  other  chiefs 
*  Three  have  been  since  added. 


INDIAN    CHIEFS.  193 

proffered  it  to  me  with  respectful  obeisance.  On  signifying1 
to  him  that  it  was  a  gift  he  placed  it  with  great  care  in 
the  folds  of  his  scarlet  vest,  and  extending  his  hand  to  me, 
held  it  for  a  short  space  while  pronouncing  some  friendly 
speech. 

I  left  the  city  by  the  evening  train  of  cars,  and  reached 
BarnunVs  Hotel,  Baltimore,  at  8  p.  m. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 


DR.    WYATT. 


On  Saturday  morning  (Oct  21st.)  I  called  with  an  intro- 
duction, on  the  Rev.  Dr.  Wyatt,  rector  of  St.  Paul's ;  and 
here  I  have  to  record  one  of  the  most  agreeable  acquaint- 
ances I  formed  whilst  in  the  country.  Dr.  Wyatt  has  long 
filled  the  situation  of  president  in  the  House  of  Clerical 
and  Lay  Deputies,  to  which  post  no  one  in  the  American 
Church  could  impart  more  dignity  ;  whilst  his  regular  elec- 
tion to  it  at  the  triennial  meetings  of  the  General  Conven- 
tion is  a  high  testimony  of  the  estimation  in  which  he  is 
held  by  the  whole  Church.  I  may  add,  that  such  an  office 
confers  as  much,  if  not  greater,  relative  distinction  on  its 
possessor  than  that  of  bishop,  to  which,  but  for  the  high 
state  of  party  feeling  in  Maryland,  Dr.  Wyatt  would  have 
been  elected  on  two  occasions  of  a  vacant  chair.  On  the 
last  vacancy  (in  1839)  the  votes  were  nearly  balanced  be- 
tween him  and  a  rival  candidate,  but  neither  party  having 
the  requisite  majority  of  two-thirds,  the  Convention  made 
choice  of  another,  in  the  person  of  the  Rev.  William  Rollin- 
son  Whittingham,  Professor  of  Ecclesiastical  History  in  the 
General  Theological  Seminary,  a  gentleman  of  the  same 
school  as  Dr.  Wyatt,  under  whose  firm  and  vigorous  ad- 
ministration the  diocess  has  since  greatly  flourished. 

I  found  Dr.  Wyatt  occupying  the  old  episcopal  residence, 
the  property  of  the  parish  of  St.  Paul's  with  the  rectorship 
of  which  the  bishop's  office  was  formerly  connected  ;  it  is 


st  Paul's  church.  197 

now  only  the  rectory  house  of  the  parish.  Antique  in  its 
appearance,  it  stands  back  from  the  street,  and  is  thickly 
shaded  with  trees,  like  more  than  one  old  parsonage  which 
I  recollect  in  early  days,  announcing  to  the  by-passer  the 
abode  of  piety  and  learning.  Its  courteous  inmate  received 
me  with  dignified  frankness,  and  after  offering  me  the  hos- 
pitalities of  his  house  (which  I  only  partially  accepted)  in- 
vited me  to  preach  in  his  pulpit  on  the  afternoon  of  the 
-  next  day. 

On  reaching  my  hotel  I  found  the  Dr.'s  younger  son,  a 
bright  intelligent  youth,  already  awaiting  my  arrival,  hav- 
ing been  sent  to  pioneer  me  to  the  principal  places  of  inter- 
est in  the  city.  These  are  more  numerous  for  the  size  of 
the  place  than  in  New  York,  or  Philadelphia,  and  give  evi- 
dence of  greater  taste,  and  regard  to  elegance  than  the  lat- 
ter, of  which  the  monuments,  public  fountains,  and  various 
architectural  ornaments  which  meet  the  eye  in  different 
parts  of  the  city,  afford  constant  evidence.  Of  the  former, 
the  colossal  statue  of  Washington  by  Causici,  on  a  Doric 
Column  and  base  ISO  feet  high,  is  a  superb  work  of  art, 
and  gives  a  character  to  the  whole  city  as  seen  from  neigh- 
bouring elevations.  The  fountains  are  also  classically  em- 
bellished with  basins  and  temples  of  marble,  and  the  archi- 
tecture of  private  residences,  some  of  which  are  truly 
princely,  also  shows  a  prevalence  of  individual  taste  to 
which  the  Philadelphians  are  total  strangers. 

St.  Paul's  church,  in  which  I  worshipped  the  next  morn- 
ing, is  the  third  in  point  of  dimensions,  and  beauty  of  de- 
sign in  the  United  States.  The  main  building  was  com- 
pleted in  1817,  and  the  spire,  which  somewhat  resembles 
St.  Pancras,  has  been  since  added.  In  this  church  the  com- 
munion table  occupies  its  proper  place  near  the  wall  ;*  but 

*  This  arrangement  is  of  course  superseded  where,  in  a  large  church  the 
choristers  occupy  the  chancel  end;  as  in  our  English  cathedrals,  the  Temple 


198  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

the  disproportionate  size  and  situation  of  the  pulpit,  imme- 
diately in  front,  almost  hides  it  from  view :  a  smaller  evil, 
it  must  be  granted,  than  giving  the  altar  a  subordinate 
place  in  front  of  the  pulpit,  but  which  is  easily  remedied  by 

church  etc. ;  when  the  altar  should,  according  to  ecclesiastical  rule,  and  the 
universal  custom  of  the  early  Church,  stand  out  somewhat  from  the  wall.  Hence 
the  word  choir  from  modo  coronae.  St.  Paul's  church,  Baltimore,  is  well  con- 
trived for  the  choral  chancel  service.  Who  that  has  worshipped  in  a  church 
where  this  primitive  arrangement  is  observed  but  has  been  struck  with  its  sim- 
ple beauty,  and  its  great  superiority  to  the  gallery  clioir  mode  1  The  chapel  of 
St.  Mary's  (Romish)  College,  Baltimore,  affords  a  fine  specimen,  which  shows 
how  well  it  can  be  adapted  even  to  a  small  church.  I  need  scarcely  add  that 
the  plan  of  a  pulpit  in  the  rear  of  the  altar,  (the  latter  forming  its  adjunct) 
would  be  even  more  grotesque  in  this  case  than  the  present  arrangement  in  many 
American  churches :  the  idea,  originally,  of  Bishop  Hobart,  whose  catholic  creed 
failed  to  correct  his  early  puritanical  bias  and  national  utilitarianism ;  and  whose 
stong  American  prejudices  led  him  to  eschew  any  European  precedent  in  mat- 
ters which  he  considered  non-essential.  I  am  happy,  however,  to  add,  that  his 
barbarous  innovations  in  the  churches  of  New- York  are,  one  by  one,  being  re- 
moved ;  though  the  extent  to  which  the  miserable  models  have  been  copied  in 
that  wide  diocess,  and  all  over  the  Union  is  a  thing  to  be  deplored  by  every  lover 
of  taste. 

While  alluding  to  the  subject  of  detached  altars  and  (antiphonal)  choir  music, 
I  will  add  the  statement  of  my  brother,  who  has  made  the  subject  of  ecclesiasti- 
cal antiquities  his  study : — 

"  In  many  larger  churches,  and  in  cathedrals,  where  the  width  was  greater 
[than  in  small  parish  churches]  the  spot  usually  chosen  for  the  altar  was  the 
middle  of  the  part  hence  denominated  the  Choir.  In  the  case  of  a  cruciform 
church  such  a  position  was  particularly  appropriate,  as  it  affords  a  direct  and 
uninterrupted  view  to  the  worshippers,  whether  standing  in  the  transept,  nave, 
or  chancel.  In  the  ancient  liturgies  was  a  prayer  '  for  all  those  that  stood  round 
about  the  altar.'  The  priests  and  the  deacons  surrounded  it  when  they  officiated, 
and  Durandus,  a  catholic  writer,  informs  us  that  when  a  bishop  consecrates  a 
a  new  altar,  he  must  encompass  it  seven  times,  from  which  it  was  manifest  that 
it  could  not  have  stood  against  a  wall.  Additional  evidence  to  the  same  effect 
might  be  cited  on  the  authority  of  Eusebius,  Dionysius  the  Areopagite,  Chrys- 
ostom,  Athanasius,  and  in  our  own  country,  Austin,  first  Archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury, and  Venerable  Bede.  Railing  the  altar  in  is  usually  dated  from  the  period 
of  the  Council  of  Aix,  held  in  1583;  one  of  whose  Canons  ordains  '  Unumquod- 
que  Altare  sepiatur  omninosepioferreo  vel  lapideo  vel  ligneo.'  " — "  Chronicles  of 
The  Devizes"  by  James  Waylen  Esq.  p.  302. 


DR.    WYATT.  199 

placing  the  pulpit  and  reading-desk  (if  reading-desk  there 
must  be)  at  corresponding  angles  of  the  transept  or  aisles, 
and  thus — without  any  loss  in  hearing  or  seeing — throw- 
ing open  the  chancel,  with  its  edifying  embellishments,  to 
the  view  of  the  whole  congregation. 

In  the  vestry-room  Dr.  Wyatt  introduced  me  to  his  as- 
sistant, Mr.  Hutton,  now  rector  of  a  parish  in  Montgomery 
county  in  the  same  state,  who  read  morning  prayers,  the 
doctor  taking  the  ante-communion  service.  His  sermon 
was  directed  against  duelling,  and  was  called  forth  by  a 
fatal  meeting  which  had  lately  taken  place  near  the  city, 
and  the  peculiar  circum stances  of  which  had  caused  much 
excitement.  Dr.  Wyatt's  pulpit  style,  though  adapted  to 
the  class  of  hearers  who  compose  his  congregation,  would 
be  ill-suited  to  the  mixed  audience  within  the  walls  of  an 
English  Church,  where  happily  (and  may  it  always  be  so) 
the  Church  is  the  heritage  of  the  poor  man  as  well  as  the 
rich.  As  a  masterly  specimen  of  style,  the  doctor's  pulpit 
compositions  merit  high  praise.  They  combine  elegance 
and  idiomatic  accuracy,  the  language  being  full  and  har- 
monious, and,  though  richly  ornamented,  free  from  the 
faults  of  that  luxuriance  of  style  which  too  commonly  per- 
vades the  American  pulpit.  For  purity  of  language,  and 
simplicity  of  expression  he  is  justly  considered  to  excel  his 
cotemporaries.  In  force,  vehemence,  and  poetic  imagery 
Dr.  Hawks  may  stand  alone  in  the  class  of  popular  preach- 
ers, and  Bishop  Eastburn  in  the  smoothness  and  melody  of 
his  periods,  and  the  manliness  of  his  conceptions,  but  for 
naturalness  and  purity,  Wyatt  has  no  equal  in  the  Amer- 
ican Church.  In  the  language  of  an  eminent  critic  ap- 
plied to  the  writings  of  the  best  British  authors  of  Anne's 
reign,  "  it  is  pure  English  undenled,  flowing  in  its  own  na- 
tive channel,  and  reflecting  home  objects  and  scenes." 

In  the  evening  I  entered  Christ-church,  next  to  St.  Paul's 


200  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

in  point  of  size  and  beauty.  The  preacher  was  Dr.  Johns, 
afterwards  the  rival  candidate  of  Dr.  Wyatt  for  the  bishop- 
ric, mentioned  above.  His  sermon  was  different  in  its 
character  from  that  of  the  morning,  being  wholly  extem- 
pore, and  unmethodical,  though  delivered  with  considerable 
fluency.  It  was,  however,  marked  by  a  disagreeable  re- 
dundancy of  words,  and  a  want  of  naturalness  in  the 
preacher's  action,  which  greatly  marred  the  general  effect, 
and  which  are  faults  only  excusable  in  a  very  youthful 
preacher. 

The  pulpit  in  Christ-church  is  made  of  white  marble, 
and  stands  out  from  a  recess  which  should  be  the  chancel, 
but  which  is  filled  with  a  luxuriant  sofa  ( ! !)  raised  on  a 
carpeted  platform,  for  the  special  accommodation  of  the 
preacher  during  the  time  of  service ;  the  communion  table 
being  actually  pushed  into  a  corner  on  one  side  of  the  read- 
ing desk  to  make  room  for  the  pulpit,  and  its  appliances. 
This  looks  like  man-worship  with  a  vengeance,  and  is  as 
total  a  violation  of  every  rule  of  good  taste,  as  of  ecclesias- 
tical propriety. 


CHAPTER  XXXIII. 


THE    "  ROMAN    CATHOLIC'     SOCIETY    IN    AMERICA. 

l:  What!  shall  the  vine  so  nobly  brought 

With  blood  and  fiery  toil, 
From  Romish  Egypt,  turn  her  roots, 

Back  to  its  meagre  soil  1 
Nay,  strong  in  liberty  she'll  stand 

With  glorious  foliage  decked, 
For  planted  by  our  God's  own  hand 

His  right  hand  shall  protect. 

Of  no  Italian  bishop,  we 

The  sway  usurping  own, 
Which,  in  the  times  true  catholic, 

The  Church  had  never  known; 
But  by  an  apostolic  line 

Descended  from  of  old, 
We  yet  the  traditum  divine 

Of  Bishop  Gregory  hold. 

Be't  your's  to  own  Trent's  false  decrees — 

Rome's  popish  rod  to  dread, — 
We  hold  the  councils  catholic, 

And  Christ  our  glorious  Head ; 
A  martyr-bearing  Church  indeed, 

We  claim  our  Mother  high ; 
And  we  have  yet  our  Lauds  to  bleed, 

Our  Dinoths  to  reply. 

We  pity  thee  misguided  Rome! 

In  olden  time  you  burned 
The  brightest  beacon  of  the  Faith, 

And  noble  trophies  earned  ; 
But  now  you've  wrapped  yourself  in  night, 

With  error's  pall  arrayed; 
That  Holy  Faith  once  pure  and  bright 

You  almost  have  betrayed. 

What !  burned  our  apostolic  light 

With  such  ambiguous  blaze, 
That  ye  should  dare  true  sheep  invite 

In  schism's  fold  to  graze? 
Our  Shepherds  true  have  roused  them  quick 

To  guard  their  trust  divine, 
And  show  we  love  Church  Catholic 

More,  Arath's  lord,  than  thine." 

I  spent  Monday  in  a  further  survey  of  the  city,  in  com- 
pany with  Mr.  Hutton.     The  exchange,  custom  house,  city 


202  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

hall,  court  house,  hospital,  masonic  hall,  etc.,  are  well 
worth  inspection  ;  but  the  most  important  edifice  in  Balti- 
more is  the  Roman  Catholic  cathedral,  which  I  surveyed 
at  my  leisure  the  next  day.  It  falls  far  short  of  similar 
buildings  in  the  old  world,  but  is  nevertheless  a  church  of 
considerable  pretensions.  The  order  is  Grecian,  which  is 
unsuited  to  the  cruciform  plan.  Some  pictures  of  great 
merit  near  the  west  entrance  were  presents  from  Louis 
XVI.  and  Charles  X.  The  archbishop's  house  is  in  the 
rear  of  the  altar.  He  is  metropolitan  of  the  Romanists, 
in  the  United  States,  by  the  title  of  "  The  Most  Rev.  the 
Archbishop  of  Baltimore,"*  the  diocess  under  his  control 
comprising  the  State  of  Maryland  and  the  District  of  Co- 
lumbia. 

The  Roman  Catholic  province  of  the  United  States,  has 
about  half  the  number  of  sees  and  clergymen  as  the  Anglo- 
American  Church.  It  was  constituted  by  Pope  Pius  VII. 
in  1808,  which  year  fixes  the  date  of  its  existence  ;  being 
twenty-one  years  after  the  American  Church  had  acquired 
its  complete  form  in  the  consecration  of  three  bishops :  or 

*  The  spirited  stanzas  at  the  head  of  this  chapter  refer  to  a  letter  which  Dr. 
Kenrick,  a  bishop  in  Archbishop  Eccleston's  province,  addressed  to  the  bishops 
of  the  American  Church,  inviting  them  to  join  the  Romish  schism.  Gregory 
the  Great,  (referred  to  in  the  second  stanzas)  was  Bishop  of  Rome,  A.D.  590. 
He  affirmed  the  title  of  "Universal  Bishop"  to  be  "profane,  anti-christian,  and 
infernal,  by  whomsoever  assumed."  (Consult  the  authorities  referred  to  in  Mur- 
duck's  Mosheim,  vol.  1.  p.  461.) 

At  the  interview  between  Augustine  and  the  clergy  of  the  British  Church, 
Dinoth,  Abbot  of  Bangor  (referred  to  in  the  third  stanza)  declined,  on  behalf 
of  himself  and  brethren,  to  recognize  the  Bishop  of  Rome  in  any  higher  charac- 
ter than  as  a  friendly  prelate — "  We  are  bound"  he  said  "  to  serve  the  Church 
of  God,  and  the  Bishop  of  Rome  and  every  godly  Christian,  as  far  as  helping 
them  in  offices  of  love  and  charity  ;  this  service  we  are  ready  to  pay,  but  more 
than  this  I  do  not  know  to  be  due  to  him  or  any  other.  We  have  a  primate  of 
our  own,  who  is  to  advise  us  under  God,  and  to  keep  us  in  the  way  of  spiritual 
life." 

Dr.  Kenrick  (referred  to  in  the  fifth  stanza)  styled  himself  "  Bishop  of  Arath." 


"ROMAN    CATHOLIC"    SOCIETY    IN    AMERICA.  203 

should  the  American  Romanists  date  the  establishment  of 
their  Church  from  the  consecration  of  their  first  "  Bishop  of 
Baltimore,"  they  are  no  better  off,  as  (to  say  nothing  of  that 
prelate's  episcopal  powers  being  confined  to  the  diocess  over 
which  he  was  placed,  whose  limits  were  the  same  as  they 
now  are)  the  date  of  his  consecration  was  two  years  after 
that  of  Bishops  White  and  Provoost,  and  Jive  years  after 
that  of  Bishop  Seabury.  As  regards  the  question  of  pri- 
ority, therefore,  the  Church  planted  in  the  United  States 
by  England  has  the  first  claim  on  the  support  of  the  nation 
as  an  episcopal  Church ;  and  this,  by  itself,  is  a  material 
point. 

There  are,  however,  other  points  of  controversy  between 
the  two  communions.  One  of  these  relates  to  the  validity 
of  Romish  American  orders.  The  society  of  Romanists  in 
England  it  is  well  known,  date  their  origin  from  the  reign 
of  Elizabeth,  when  the  united  Holy  Catholic  Church  of 
England,  one  and  undivided,  including  the  whole  nation, 
was  disturbed  by  a  schism  amongst  some  of  its  members, 
who  dissented  from  it,  and  established  a  sect  in  this  coun- 
try, which  sect  took  its  rise  conjointly  with  other  sects. 
The  principles  of  this  new  sect  were  similar  to  certain  ex- 
ploded tenets,  imported  from  Italy,  which  had  at  one  time 
tainted  the  national  faith,  and  which  had  been  lopped  off 
by  the  regular  guardians  (the  episcopal  heads)  of  the  Eng- 
lish Church.  In  support  of  their  schism,  this  dissenting 
body  called  in  the  aid  of  the  Italian  bishop,  who  gave  his 
countenance  and  support  to  the  new  society  ;  they  in  return 
acknowledging  his  spiritual  authority,  conforming  to  the 
forms  of  worship  used  in  his  province,  though  in  a  foreign 
tongue,  unintelligible  to  them,  and  placing  themselves  un- 
der his  priests.  That  the  episcopal  ordination  of  these  in- 
truding clergy  did  not  give  authority  to  their  acts  in  Eng- 
land, nor  communicate  to  the  schismatical  body  at  whose 


204        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

instance  they  came  here,  the  form  or  substance  of  a  Cath- 
olic Church,  nor  alter  its  character  as  a  dissenting  body  from 
the  Catholic  Church  then  established  in  England  requires 
no  proof,  being  self-evident.  Primitive  usage,  and  universal 
canon  law,  making  it  illegal  and  schismatical  for  one  bish- 
op, or  one  patriarch  to  interfere  with  the  province  of  an- 
other ;  nor  does  the  elevation  of  some  of  these  foreign 
ecclesiastics  to  the  episcopate  by  a  form  of  consecration 
make  them  any  the  less  dissenting  ministers  amongst  us  : 
Romanists  in  principle — Catholic  only  in  name.* 

*  "  The  alien-vassals  of  Rome,  properly  called  papists,  and  improperly  called 
anything  else,  have  a  very  adroit  method  of  fixing  upon  the  Church  of  England 
the  offensive  stigma  and  imputation  of  the  deadly  sin  of  schism.  Always  anxious 
to  assert  and  reiterate  the  same  iniquitous  falsehood,  such  individuals  never 
trouble  themselves  about  proof.  The  offence  is  altogether  the  papists',  not 
ours.  A  point  of  history  proves  it;  and  this  we  proceed  to  set  before  the 
reader. 

"  The  case  is  clear  to  those  who  will  examine  the  facts  of  it ;  so  clear,  that 
even  Father  Barnes,  the  Benedictine,  wrote  a  book  called  "  Catholicus  Ro- 
manus  Pacificatue,"  to  induce  the  Roman  patriarch  to  receive  the  English 
Church  into  his  communion,  justifying  us  from  the  charge  of  schism  and  her- 
esy.    Palmer,  ii.  258. 

With  respect  then  to  the  schism  with  which  we  are  charged,  we  will  say 
a  few  words,  and,  for  the  present  leave  father .  Barnes  to  acquit  us  of 
"  heresy." 

Upon  the  accession  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  anno  1558,  the  whole  body  of  tire 
nation  conformed  to  the  purified  ritual — the  ritual  of  the  papists  retrenched, 
(as  Mr.  O'Croly,  the  popish  priest,  admits) :  its  erroi-s  and  novelties  being  ex- 
punged, its  ancient  excellencies  kept,  and  parts  of  other  ancient  liturgies  being 
added ;  these  form  the  basis  of  our  present  Book  of  Common  Prayer,  which 
has,  since  that  time,  undergone  no  material  alteration. 

Out  of  the  whole  body  of  clergy  and  dignitaries,  fourteen  bishops  and  a  hun- 
dred and  eighty  nine  priests  only,  were  recusants. 

Nor  was  this  conformity  objected  to  (openly  at  least)  by  the  pope.  For  so 
long  as  he  had  any  hope  of  winning  Elizabeth  to  cede  the  question  of  "  su- 
premacy," the  papists  were  actually  allowed  to,  and  did,  conform  to  the  use  of 
the  liturgy,  and  of  the  public  worship — the  Common  Prayer — after  its  method, 
with  the  protesting  catholics  of  the  purified  National  Church,  and  they  were 
allowed  to,  and  did,  receive  the  sacrament  of  the  Lord's  Supper  at  the  hands 


"ROMAN    CATHOLIC"    SOCIETY    IX    AMERICA.        205 

The  i:  Roman  Catholic  Church"  of  the  United  States  is 
the  offspring  of  this  Romanist  society  as  regularly  and 
legitimately  as  the  Church  episcopal  in  that  country  is  the 

of  the  conforming  clergy.  It  was  not  until  after  successive  Italian  arch-priests 
found  that  there  was  no  chance  of  succeeding  in  their  wiles  to  insnare  the 
Queen  into  acknowledgment  of  vassalage  to  Rome,  that  Pius  V.,  in  1569,  is- 
sued his  "  Bull"  commanding  all  to  separate  from  the  Church  of  England  who 
were  still  willing  to  submit  to  "his  fraudulent  falsehood  and  false-pretended  su- 
premacy"— (as  the  burning  Bishop  Bonner  had  formerly  icell  taught  those  to  say, 
whom  he  aftencards  burned  for  believing  him,  and  protesting  accordingly).  The 
papists  doing  this,  (i.  e.  obeying  the  Italian  bishop,  and  disobeying  their  own 
metropolitan,)  they  separated  from  us;  and,  in  that  act  of  separation  became 
papal  recusants ;  and  they  are,  therefore,  papistical  schismatics  from  the  Episco- 
pal National  Church.      They  separated,  schismatized,from  us. 

They  and  others  affirm,  that  we  are  schismatics;  but  let  the  fact  I  have  ad- 
duced assure  all  catholics,  (not  Italian  catholics.)  to  the  contrary.  I  repeat  it, 
they,  with  the  secular  clergy,  conformed  to  the  purified  ritual,  and  used  it  for 
upwards  of  ten  years.  If  that  ritual  were  effective  then  why  not  now  ?  and 
why  rend  the  "Body  of  Christ"  (Col.  i.  24)  for  points  non-essential  1  If  not 
effective,  how  came  the  pope  to  allow  their  use  of  it  1  Their  then  conformity 
gives  the  stamp  and  character  to  their  sin,  which,  as  regards  their  national 
standing,  is  SCHISM  ;  and  which,  commencing  then,  has  unhappily  continued 
ever  since.  A  "schism"  indeed  there  is! — But  they  have  made  it,  not  we. 
This  is  a  fact-historical,  that  no  Churchman  should  ever  lose  sight  of. 

"  I  solemnly  protest  at  this  moment,  I  know  not  why  a  papist  separates  him- 
self from  our  Communion :  and  of  this  I  am  confident,  that  out  of  all  the 
boasted  millions  of  them  in  this  empire,  not  one  could  himself  give  any  other 
reason  for  it,  save  this, — that  the  Pope  ordered  him.  Of  respectable  authority, 
sometimes,  in  Rome,  but  none  here  at  any  time :  and  they  who  disparaged  their 
proper  diocesan  by  swamping  his  authority,  in  upholding  the  usurpation  of  a 
pretender  to  foreign  jurisdiction,  will  be  accountable  for  all  the  sin  of  weaken- 
ing the  authority  of  the  Episcopate  of  Christ,  as  well  as  for  the  guilt,  the 
great  guilt,  of  living  in  avowed,  constant,  determined,  and  depraved  schism. — 
Rev.  Mr.  Glover. 

The  remarks  of  the  excellent  Bishop  of  Toronto  (Dr.  Strachan)  under  this 
head  also  put  this  matter  in  its  true  light,  and  in  a  few  words.  They  are  con- 
tained in  a  Charge  to  his  clergy,  delivered  June  G,  1844 : 

"  Before  leaving  this  subject,  permit  me  to  remind  you  that  the  Church  of 
England  is  not  an  offset  from  the  Church  of  Rome  in  the  sixteenth  century,  as 
many  of  her  enemies  assert;  for  she  never  separated  from  that  Church,  but 


206  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

daughter  of  the  Church  of  England,  the  Church  presbyte- 
rial  of  the  Church  of  Scotland  (so  called,)  the  congrega- 
tionalists  of  the  English  independants,  the  baptists  of  the 
English  baptists,  and  the  methodists  of  the  English  Wes- 
leyans.  Dr.  Carroll,  the  first  "  Archbishop  of  Baltimore," 
was  consecrated  at  Lullworth  in  Dorsetshire,  by  Dr. 
Charles  Walmsley,  one  of  the  intruding  priests  in  the 
Bishop  of  Salisbury's  diocess,  and  from  that  source  the 
Romish   clergy  of   the  United  States    either   derive   theii 

was  originally  an  independent  branch  of  the  Catholic  Church,  founded  not  by 
missionaries  from  Rome,  but  by  the  apostles  or  their  immediate  successors  ;  and 
thus  she  continued  till  the  eleventh  century,  when  the  Church  of  Rome  as- 
sumed an  ascendency  over  her,  but  which  was  never  fully  recognised,  nor  was 
it  effected,  till  after  a  long  and  arduous  struggle, — a  struggle  which  was  re- 
newed from  time  to  time,  and  on  the  first  favourable  opportunity,  which  hap- 
pened in  the  sixteenth  century,  her  independency  was  regained.  The  great 
ignorance  which  prevails  on  this  subject,  even  among  educated  people,  is  truly 
surprising.  They  speak  of  the  '  Protestant  Church  of  England'  as  if  it  were 
a  distinct  body  from  the  Church  which  subsisted  before  Henry  the  Eighth, 
and  as  if,  at  the  Reformation,  the  protestant  clergy  supplanted  the  clergy  of  the 
Church  of  Rome.  So  far  was  this  from  being  the  case,  that  when  the  Refor- 
mation was  established  in  England,  all  the  clergy  conformed  to  the  new  order 
of  things,  with  the  exception  of  eighty  out  of  ten  or  twelve  thousand,  and 
therefore  the  Church  in  England,  as  composed  of  the  clergy  and  laity  in  the 
reign  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  consisted  of  the  very  same  body  of  persons  which 
formed  it  in  the  reign  of  her  father.  The  real  fact  of  the  matter  is  this  :— out 
of  the  eighteen  centuries  during  which  the  Church  of  England  has  existed,  she 
continued  about  four  hundred  and  fifty  years  under  the  usurped  dominion  of 
the  Church  of  Rome,  and  for  thirteen  hundred  and  fifty  years  she  has  been  an 
independent  branch  of  the  Church  Catholic.  So  great  is  the  absurdity  and 
palpable  ignorance  of  historical  facts  evinced  by  those  who  represent  the  Church 
of  England  as  a  branch  separated  from  the  Roman  communion !  Our  Re- 
formers merely  brought  back  the  Church  of  England  to  the  same  state  of  pu- 
rity and  liberty  which  it  enjoyed  previous  to  the  temporary  imposition  of  the 
papal  yoke.  They  put  forth  no  new  doctrines,  but  merely  divested  the  old 
ones  of  the  corruptions  which  had  been  fastened  upon  them  during  the  dark 
ages.  In  all  essential  points,— in  the  Sacraments,— in  the  unbroken  succession 
of  Ministers,— the  Church  of  England  is  at  this  day  the  same  that  it  was  in 
primitive  times." 


"ROMAN*    CATHOLIC"    SOCIETY    IN    AMERICA.        2l)7 

orders  or  their  parochial  appointments.  Thus,  priori/)/  of 
occupation  and  origin,  both  give  to  the  Anglo-American 
hierarchy  an  advantage  over  the  rival  episcopate. 

But  the  Romish- American  orders  are  further  impaired  by 
another  circumstance.  It  is  well  known  that  the  Church, 
from  the  earliest  period,  required  the  presence  of  three 
bishops  in  consecrating  to  the  highest  office  of  its  threefold 
ministry.  Consecration  by  one  bishop  was  forbidden  by 
the  Apostolic  Canons,  and  the  canons  of  the  councils  of 
Aries,  Nice,  Antioch,  Laodicea,  and  Carthage.  Church 
history  informs  us,  that  the  Patriarch  of  Constantinople 
(Michael  Oxites)  rejected  the  ordinations  performed  by  two 
bishops  on  the  ground  of  their  own  imperfect  consecration, 
conferred  by  a  single  bishop,  and  that  the  first  Council  of 
Orange,  A.  D.  529,  directed  that  in  any  case  of  such  de- 
parture from  universal  and  primitive  usage  both  parties 
should  be  solemnly  deposed. 

There  are  good  reasons  for  this  law  of  the  Church :  the 
principal  of  which  is,  that — as  from  the  bishop  proceeds 
the  commission  of  the  priesthood,  and  the  continuance  of 
the  succession  in  his  own  order — it  is  important  that  there 
be  full  evidence  of  his  own  regular  consecration,  which  the 
attestation  of  two  or  more  consecrators  secures,  certainly 
more  effectually  than  that  of  one.  Be  that  as  it  may,  the 
practice  of  the  Church  has  been  to  have  two  or  more  con- 
secrators for  each  bishop  ;  and  the  most  eminent  writers  in 
the  Romish  Church,  with  Bellarmine  at  their  head,  ques- 
tion the  validity  of  consecration  by  only  one.  We  have, 
therefore,  the  authority  of  that  Church  in  Europe,  in  pro- 
nouncing the  orders  of  the  Romish  American  Church  in 
the  United  States  doubtful,  at  the  least. 

The  only  shadow  of  a  claim  to  episcopal  authority  in 
the  United  States,  which  the  doctors  of  this  communion 
possess,  rests  upon  the  shallow  fable  of  the  pope;s  suprem- 


208        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

acy ;  Pius  VII.  having  sanctioned  the  establishment  of  a 
branch  Church  in  the  United  States  by  the  English  papists, 
and  recognised  Dr.  Carroll  as  the  arch-episcopal  head  of 
the  new  province  :  as  though  a  Bull  from  Rome  could  sup- 
ply the  defeet  of  his  consecration,  any  more  than  a  decree 
from  Canterbury  or  London,  pronouncing  Dr.  Coke  a 
bishop,  by  virtue  of  having  received  consecration  from 
John  Wesley,  could  have  invested  him  with  valid  episcopal 
powers  ! 

Judged  by  these  laws  and  standards  of  its  own  mother 
Church  in  Europe,  the  Romanist  society  of  the  United 
States  is  proved  to  be  an  unsound  and  schismatical  branch 
of  the  Church  Catholic. 

But  would  the  lawfully  existing,  and  lawfully  constituted 
catholic  Church  in  the  United  States  deem  these  defects  in 
the  constitution  of  the  rival  communion  insuperable  bars 
to  an  union  with  her,  and  a  recognition  of  her  orders  in 
the  three  degrees  of  the  ministry  ? — This  is  an  important 
question  at  the  present  moment !  That  union  has  been 
proposed  on  the  part  of  the  Romish  "  Church"  by  the 
present  "  Bishop  of  Philadelphia"*  in  a  letter  addressed  to 
the  American  prelates,  in  which  he  promises,  on  behalf  of 
himself  and  his  colleagues,  that  "  nothing  shall  be  wanting 
on  their  part  to  facilitate  the  reconciliation  ;" — hinting  that 
as  "  the  object  merits  the  greatest  sacrifices  the  indulgence 
of  the  Church  would  be  extended  to  the  utmost  limits, 
consistent  with  principle,  and  the  general  interests  of  reli- 
gion."t 

An  excellent  and  catholic  spirit  characterises  the  lan- 
guage of  Dr.  Kenrick's  proposal,  though  it  is  accompanied 
with  conditions  to  which  it  is  impossible  for  the  American 

*  Dr.  Kenrick,  then  "  Bishop  of  Arath"  and  assistant  to  the  Romish  "  Bishop 
of  Philadelphia." 

t  Bishop  Kenrick's  Letter  to  the  Protestant  Bishops,  p.  14. 


"ROMAN    CATHOLIC"    SOCIETY    IN    AMERICA.  209 

Church  to  listen.  Concessions  must  doubtless  be  made  on 
both  sides.  On  the  part  of  the  national  Church  the  utmost 
which  she  could  yield  would  be  the  recognition  of  Romish- 
American  orders,  and  some  trifling  alterations  of  the  ritual 
worship,  in  matters  not  affecting  doctrine.  With  regard  to 
the  first  of  these  concessions,  it  will  be  remembered,  that 
though  neither  the  American  Church  nor  her  English 
mother  have  ever  departed  from  the  good  rule  of  "  two  or 
more  consecrators,"  yet  it  is  only  in  her  case  a  matter  of 
discipline,  being  bound  by  no  councils  or  decretals,  while 
the  act  of  union  with  her  on  the  part  of  the  Romanist  so- 
ciety would  repair  the  defect  in  the  transmission  of  the  line 
of  succession  through  a  schismatical  body  in  England,  pos- 
sessed by  the  Romish  bishops  and  clergy  ;  who,  on  their 
part,  must  relinquish  the  dogma  of  the  pope's  supremacy, 
with  all  other  doctrines  not  at  present  held  in  common  by 
the  two  Churches.  With  this  surrender,  hypothetical  ordi- 
nation would  no  doubt  be  deemed  unnecessary,  and  their 
bishops  could  occupy  sees ;  the  conforming  clergy  under 
them  retaining  their  present  parochial  charges. 

That  such  an  union,  however  desirable,  cannot  be  effec- 
ted till  a  considerable  change  has  been  wrought  in  public 
opinion  is  self  evident.  The  much  abused  "  Oxford  Tracts," 
and  the  discussions  to  which  these  publications  have  hap- 
pily for  the  cause  of  truth,  given  rise,  are,  however,  doing 
much  to  enlighten  the  members  of  the  American  Church 
on  the  subject  of  catholicity  ;  and  intercourse  with  protes- 
tants  is  gradually  unloosening  the  prejudices  of  Romanists, 
and  weakening  their  attachment  to  a  foreign  prelate,  whose 
"  infallibility  "  and  "  rightful  supremacy  as  St.  Peter's  suc- 
cessor" (long  discarded  as  a  fable  by  intelligent  Romanists 
in  Germany  and  France)  is  disclaimed  as  an  article  of  be- 
lief by  every  educated  member  of  that  communion  in  Amer- 
ica.    I  have  myself  heard  it  personally  disavowed  on  re- 

14 


210  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

peated  occasions.  It  is  this  dogma,  in  fact,  which  now 
stands  in  the  way  of  union.  Till  the  whole  Roman  Church 
alters,  of  course  no  particular  branch*  can  make  any  essen- 
tial modifications  in  her  system  ;  and  while  the  pontiff  re- 
tains his  temporal  sovereignty,  reformation  we  may  be  sure 
will  never  begin  in  corrupt  Italy.  Remove  the  Austrian 
bayonets,  which  now  uphold  the  temporal  throne  of  St. 
Peter's  present  successor,  and  away  it  will  be  carried  by  the 
instantaneous  sweep  of  popular  invasion — the  thing  is 
inevitable  !  With  that  event  the  figment  of  Roman  su- 
premacy will  disappear  like  a  shadow  of  the  night;  the 
triple  crown  (blasphemous  emblem)  will  be  exchanged  for 
the  simple  mitre,  which  irradiated  the  head  of  Clement, 
Cornelius,  or  Leo  the  Frst,  in  her  earlier  and  purer  days. 
The  Church  of  Rome  will  not,  God  forbid  that  it  should, 
become  extinct,  or  shine  with  feeble  lustre  among  the 
Churches  of  Christendom  ;  but  purged  of  its  dross  and  its 
tin,  "  its  bishop"  in  the  language  of  Bishop  Whittingham, 
"  the  usurper  of  an  unholy  lordship  over  God's  heritage 
will  be  driven  back  powerless  to  the  narrow  limits  of  his 
own  true  jurisdittion  ;t  the  prestage  of  his  usurped  author- 
ity removed  ;  the  Scriptures,  which  even  now  he  is  unable 
to  keep  from  his  people,  will  defsecate  the  doctrine  of  his 
subjects  ;  and  the  many  valuable  remnants  of  primitive 
simplicity,  and  earnestness,  and  zeal  which  still  survive, 
like  sparks  of  holy  fire  amid  the  ashes  and  rubbish  of  ac- 
cumulated corruptions,  may  blaze  forth,  to  give  light  and 
health,  and  the  vigour  of  life  to  those  purer  forms  of  doc- 

*  It  is  a  favourable  circumstance  in  connection  with  this  question  that  the 
present  "  Archbishop  of  Baltimore,"  Dr.  Eccleston,  is  a  Jansonist,  and  in  open 
hostility  with  the  see  of  Rome. 

t  Proved  by  Mr.  Palmer  in  his  Treatise  on  the  Church,  to  have  been  bounded 
by  the  Alps. 


"ROMAN    CATHOLIC"    SOCIETY    IN    AMERICA.  211 

trine  which  are  now  too  like  the  Alpine  snows  in  coldness 
as  well  as  clarity.* 

Let  then  this  wished  for  event  transpire,  and  the 
Churches  in  those  different  countries  of  Europe  and  South 
America  which  are  still  cursed  by  thraldom  to  the  Roman 
see.  will  doubtless  make  early  use  of  their  independence  by 
banishing  the  corruptions  which  their  connection  with  it 
introduced  ;  and  like  the  Churches  of  England,  Ireland, 
Norway,  Denmark,  Sweden,  &c,  at  the  period  of  their  de- 
liverance, will  take  their  stand  on  the  ground  of  catholic 
and  primitive  verity.  This  result  would  reconcile  all  the 
discordant  elements  which  now  interrupt  the  peace  and 
unity  of  the  Church  Militant,  and  unite  the  whole  episco- 
pal family,  which  forms  more  than  eleven-twelfths  of  the 
Christian  World,  into  one  great  society  :  like  as  it  was  in 
the  first  six  centuries  of  the  Church's  existence,  till  Romish 
usurpation  disturbed  its  harmony. 

Such  an  event — and  we  cannot  doubt  that  it  is  drawing 
near — by  releasing  the  scattered  members  of  the  Romish 
Communion  in  countries  where  an  apostolic  Church  exists 
from  their  allegiance  to  Rome,  and  the  decisions  of  the 
Council  of  Trent,  will  naturally  lead  them,  if  proper  means 
are  employed,  to  seek  communion  with  it ;  nor  can  we  sup- 
pose that  such  alliance  \v ill  be,  in  any  case,  refused 

To  prepare  the  way  for  this  union  in  the  United  States^ 
the  members  of  her  Church  should  cultivate  a  spirit  and 
temper  of  kindness  and  conciliation  towards  the  clergy  and 
the  numerous  laity  of  the  sister  communion ;  avoiding  that 
uncharitable  disposition  which  deals  in  nothing  but  anathe- 
mas, wholesale  vituperation,  or  taunting  ridicule  ;  which 
designates  the  Roman  Church  as  unsound  in  every  part  of 
her  system ;  retaining  as  she  does  the  same  ministry,  creeds, 

*  This  eloquent  passage  is  contained  in  the  bishop's  introduction  to  the  Amer- 
ican edition  of  Palmer's  incomparable  "  Treatise  on  the  Church." 


212  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

holy  days  (and  with  some  additions)  the  same  ritual  as 
themselves ;  or  by  going  out  of  their  way,  and  putting  an 
unwarrantable  interpretation  on  prophetic  Scripture, — nick- 
naming her  the  "  scarlet  whore7'  of  the  Apocalypse,  the 
"man  of  sin"  etc.,  etc.  "Oh  no!"  writes  the  excellent 
catholic-minded  Bishop  of  Michigan  in  reference  to  these 
ribald  attacks,  "  rather  speak  of  her  in  kindness — thank  her 
for  the  good  she  may  have  accomplished  in  preserving  the 
Word  of  God — tell  her  of  her  faults — of  her  departure  from 
the  old  Catholic  Church — and  endeavour  to  persuade  her 
to  give  up  the  commandments  of  men,  and  come  back  to 
the  uncorrupted  Church  of  Christ.  I  pray  ardently  for  this 
happy  period  to  arrive,  when  she  will  give  up  her  errors, 
and  come  with  all  her  untiring  energy,  her  patience  under 
trial,  and  her  self-sacrificing  and  self-denying  priesthood, 
and  unite  in  the  great  work  of  bringing  the  scattered  sheep 
of  Christ  into  one  fold  under  one  shepherd,  Jesus  Christ 
our  Lord."* 

Let  the  sentiments  of  this  distinguished  prelate,  so  char- 
itably expressed,  be  carried  out  to  the  letter  by  every  bishop, 
clergyman  and  layman  of  the  American  Church,  and  by 
every  newspaper  and  periodical  published  under  its  sanc- 
tion, and  the  day  is  not  far  distant  when  the  united  Anglo 
and  Romish  American  bodies  will  be  cemented  into  one 
American  Catholic  Church;  and  like  its  common  parent, 
the  Church  of  England,  enlighten  the  world  by  the  purity 
of  its  doctrine,  the  lustre  of  its  piety,  and  the  universality 
of  its  missionary  operations.t 

*  "  Bishops  Successors  of  the  Apostles,"  p.  33. 

+  Should  the  above  views  be  pronounced  Utopian  by  the  English  reader,  the 
author  begs  to  say  that  he  is  sustained  in  them  by  several  distinguished  author- 
ities in  the  American  Church.  One  of  these,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Samuel  Farmer 
Jarvis,  the  Church's  Historiographer,  thus  expresses  himself  in  a  pamphlet  (the 
best  that  has  been  written  on  the  subject)  repelling  the  malignant  charge  brought 
against  those  who  are  labouring  to  bring  the  Church  up  to  her  proper  position, 


"  ROMAN    CATHOLIC"    SOCIETY    IN    AMERICA.        213 

and  to  exhibit  her  in  her  true  character,  as  moulded  by  the  Reformers,  by  car- 
rying out  her  own  excellent  provisions,  of  a  leaning  to  "  popery :" 

"  There  is  a  large  and  increasing  body  of  American  citizens,  who  arc  now  in 
communion  with  the  see  of  Rome;  and  upon  this  body,  an  increasing  number 
of  bishops  and  clergy  exert  a  most  untiring  energy  to  make  them  in  all  respects 
submissive  to  the  decrees  of  the  papacy.  They  are  aided  by  large  sums  received 
from  Europe,  with  which  they  are  erecting  churches,  colleges,  and  monasteries. 
The  greater  part  of  their  bishops  and  clergy  are  foreigners  by  birth  and  educa- 
tion, brought  up  under  political  influences,  very  different  from  the  institutions 
of  our  own  republic.  I  except  not  even  Ireland;  for  the  Irish  as  a  nation  are 
opposed  to  the  English  rule,  and  are  therefore  willing  to  subject  themselves  to 
an  Ecclesiastical  domination  in  their  own  communion,  from  the  exercise  of  which 
the  spirit  of  an  American  citizen  must  and  will  revolt. 

"  The  present  Roman  Catholic  population  in  this  country,  consists  in  a  very 
large  proportion  of  adopted  citizens.  Here  they  are  neither  tolerated  nor  perse- 
cuted. They  are  not  tolerated  because  they  enjoy  equal  rights  with  all  other 
classes  of  professing  Christians.  They  are  not  persecuted  unless  it  be  occasion- 
ally by  a  lawless  mob.  Their  feelings  therefore  must  necessarily  become  kind- 
er; and  their  children,  being  educated  among  the  children  of  other  denomina- 
tions of  Christians,  will  not  feel  such  horror  of  them  as  they  might  under  other 
circumstances.  Then  comes  the  general  effect  of  learning,  the  unrestrained 
freedom  of  opinion,  and  the  occasional  intermarriages  and  other  alliances,  which 
must  and  do  take  place. 

t;  Now,  under  all  these  influences  will  it  be  possible  for  the  Roman  Catholic 
clergy  to  bring  up  their  laity  to  the  ultra  notions  of  the  Jesuits  and  the  Court 
of  Rome  1  I  trow  not.  At  the  most,  they  will  only  get  them  up,  I  mean  the 
intelligent  part  of  them,  to  the  standard  of  Bossuet,  and  the  liberties  of  the 
Gallican  Church.  I  doubt  even  whether,  under  the  influence  of  our  institu- 
tions, they  will  be  made  to  ascend  higher  in  the  shades  of  opinion,  than  the 
schools  of  Port  Royal,  Pascal,  Arnauld  Nicole,  and  the  divines  of  Louvain. 

"  It  is  evident  that  the  scandals  which  in  Italy  are  seen  in  the  glare  of  day, 
are  here  kept  carefully  out  of  sight.  Their  clergy  in  general  lead  exemplary 
lives.  The  truly  catholic  doctrines  held  by  the  Church  of  Rome  are  promi- 
nently brought  forward,  and  those  which  in  reality  are  heretical,  are  softened 
and  explained  away. 

"  For  all  this  I  rejoice  Its  effect  upon  the  laity  of  their  communion  must  be 
salutary.  And  I  am  neither  sorry  nor  alarmed  when  I  hear  them  telling  their 
laity,  that  we  are  advancing  towards  them.  If  they  think  that  we  are  advanc- 
ing nearer  to  them  than  the  Church  of  England  was  at  the  lime  of  the  Reformation 
it  is  the  effect  of  their  ignorance.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  they  do  not  think  so, 
but  merely  profess  to  think  so,  in  order  that  they  may  divide  and  conquer  us, 
they  only  use  the  same  stratagem  which  the  Jesuits  used  at  the  Reformation. 


214        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

The  present  stratagem  may,  for  the  time,  have  the  same  effect  as  the  former.  It 
may  frighten  a  few  timid,  unstable  and  ignorant  souls  to  forsake  the  straight 
and  middle  way,  and  be  swallowed  up  by  the  Scylla  and  Charibdis  on  either 
shore ;  but  it  cannot  have  the  effect  upon  us  which  it  was  designed  to  have. 
The  mischief  will  recoil  upon  themselves.  It  will  dispose  the  laity  of  their  com- 
munion, to  regard  us  as  their  brethren ;  and  although  the  time  may  be  yet  dis- 
tant, when  the  convulsions  of  Europe  will  sap  the  Papal  Throne  to  its  over- 
throw, there  may  in  the  meanwhile  be  a  gradual  preparation  of  hearts  and  minds, 
which  will  ultimately  lead  to  a  blessed  harmony. 

"A  great  American  Catholic  Church,  equally  removed  from  the  extremes  of 
popery  and  puritanism !  What  a  glorious  object  for  the  American  Christian's 
contemplation ! !  Let  us  hope  the  present  agitation  will  only  render  truth 
clearer  and  hearts  kinder.  Let  us  hope  that,  being  united  in  one  holy  commu- 
nion, having  one  Lord,  one  faith,  one  baptism,  we  as  the  American  people  may 
go  forth  under  the  banners  of  our  divine  Lord  '  to  the  breaking  down  of  the 
kingdom  of  sin,  Satan,  and  death ;  till  at  length  the  whole  of  God's  dispersed 
sheep,  being  gathered  into  one  fold,  shall  become  partakers  of  everlasting  life, 
through  the  merits  and  death  of  Jesus  Christ  our  Saviour.' " — No  Union  with 
Rome,  p.  43. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

SUPPLEMENTARY    TO    THE    LAST. 

Thou  canst  not,  Cardinal,  devise  a  name 
So  slight,  unworthy,  and  ridiculous, 
To  charge  me  to  an  answer,  as  the  pope  I 
Tell  him  this  tale  *  *  * 

*  *  *  that  no  Italian  bishop 

Shall  tythe  or  toll  in  our  dominions. 
But,  as  we,  under  Heaven,  our  supreme  head 
So,  under  him,  that  great  "  supremacy" 
Whom  we  do  serve,  we  will  alone  uphold ; 
Without  the  assistance  of  a  mortal  hand. 
So  tell  the  pope ;  all  reverence  set  apart 
To  him,  and  his  usurp'd  authority. 

Shakespeare. 

Those  readers,  by  whom  the  circumstance  of  Bishop 
Kenrick's  letter  to  the  American  Hierarchy,  mentioned  in 
the  last  chapter,  may  be  regarded  (and  truly  so)  as  a  signifi- 
cant "  sign  of  the  times'''  will  not  be  uninterested  to  learn 
something  of  the  terms  in  which  it  was  responded  to  by 
the  important  body  to  whom  the  Bishop  of  Arath  [permissu 
superiorum)  addressed  himself.  The  prelates  who  for- 
mally replied  to  the  popish  legate  were  New  Jersey,  Mary- 
land, Vermont,  Illinois,  and  the  presiding  bishop.  It  must 
be  confessed  that  these  answers  were  not,  except  in  the  lat~ 
ter  instance,  couched  in  such  courteous  terms  as  the  Romish 
bishop  employs.  Each,  however,  contained  unanswerable 
replies  to  the  exceedingly  shallow  arguments  contained  in 
the  (i  Call  to  Union."  The  following  are  extracts  from  the 
Bishop  of  New  Jersey's  letter : — 

"  The  '  Lettei  on  Christian  Union,'  addressed  to  l  The 
Right  Reverend  Bishops  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church 
in  the  United  States,  by  the  Right  Rev.  Francis  Patrick 


216  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

Kenrick,  Bishop  of  Arath,'  calling  himself  '  coadjutor  of  the 
Bishop  of  Philadelphia'  was  received,  by  mail.  It  needed 
but  a  glance  to  see  that  this  was  but  another  form  of  the 
1  old  trick ;'  so  clumsily  played,  that  it  must  frustrate  its 
own  purpose,  and  '  return  to  plague  the  inventor.' 

"  Let  it  be  thought  by  none  that  he  is  rash,  in  charging 
schism  against  the  author  of  the  '  Letter  on  Christian 
Union.'  It  lies  upon  the  very  title  page !  '  Letter  on 
Christian  Union,  addressed  to  the  Bishops  of  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church,  by  the  Right  Rev.  Francis  Patrick  Ken- 
rick, Bishop  of  Arath.'  All  well  enough,  so  far.  But  what 
follows,  '  and  coadjutor  of  the  Bishop  of  Philadelphia,'  is 
unmitigated  schism. — There  needs  no  question  here  as  to 
the  aged  bishop  now  a  resident  in  Rome,  whose  coadjutor 
Bishop  Kenrick  claims  to  be  ?  The  question  is,  what  busi- 
ness has  the  Bishop  of  Arath  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia  ? 
Is  it  not  against  all  catholic  rule  that  two  bishops  should 
exercise  their  functions  in  one  city,  unless  one  be  assistant 
to  the  other  ?  Was  there  not  a  bishop  having  jurisdiction 
in  Philadelphia,  in  1808,  when  '  the  Diocess  of  Philadel- 
phia,' so  called, '  was  created  V  Was  not  the  second  bishop, 
called  by  whatever  name  in  partibus  infidelium,  an 
intruder  there?  Does  not  the  Bishop  of  Arath,  claiming 
jurisdiction,  or  exercising  functions  in  the  diocess  of  Penn- 
sylvania, convict  himself  before  the  world,  and  in  the  sight 
of  God,  of  schism,  and  worse  ?" 
*  #  #  *  *  ****** 

"  Enough  is  cited  now  to  prove,  that  neither  the  Right  Rev. 
Henry  Conwell,  D.D.,  nor  the  Right  Rev.  Francis  Patrick 
Kenrick,  D.D.  has  any  business  whatever  in  the  diocess  of 
Pennsylvania,  unless  they  are  summoned ;  and  that  the 
sooner  the  latter  of  them  betakes  himself  to  his  proper 
bishopric  of  Arath — which  he  has  probably  not  yet  visited 
— the  better. 


"ROMAN    CATHOLIC"    SOCIETY    IN    AMERICA.         217 

"  We  pass  on  to  the  '  Letter  on  Christian  Union  ;'  a 
strange  topic  for  a  schismatic  in  the  diocess  of  a  catholic 
bishop,  and  irresistably  suggesting  the  quotation  : 

"  Quis  tuterit  Gracchos  de  seditione  querentes  ?" 

Which  may  be  freely  rendered  : 

How  strange,  a  schismatic  should  rail  at  schism  !" 
#  *#****###  • 

"  It  is  as  poor  a  proof  of  self-respect,  as  of  the  estimation 
in  which  we  are  held  by  him,  that  Bishop  Kenrick  speaks 
of  '  other  serious  difficulties  in  the  way  of  union,'  which  it 
were  '  premature  to  treat  on  this  occasion,'  besides  the  doc- 
trinal concessions  and  ecclesiastical  admissions,  which  he 
calls  on  us  to  make.  When  he  has  brought  us  to  renounce 
the  faith  of  Cranmer,  Cyprian,  Ignatius,  Paul,  '  the  faith 
once  delivered  to  the  saints,'  and  embraces  the  gross  cor- 
ruptions which  were  mingled  in  the  festering  and  ferment- 
ing caldron  mixed  and  stirred  at  Trent,  and  to  recognize 
the  Bishop  of  Rome  as  '  the  true  vicar  of  Christ,  and  head 
of  the  whole  Church,  and  the  father  and  teacher  of  all 
Christians,'  the  '  personal  interests  and  claims,  which  are  at 
stake,'  will  not  detain  us  long.  God  forbid  that  we  should 
glory  !  But,  before  that  time  comes,  God  grant  that  these 
our  bodies,  may  be  '  given  to  be  burned  ! '  In  the  mean 
time,  permit  me  simply  to  inquire,  by  what  right  you,  or 
any  of,  or  even  all,  your  colleagues,  make  these  overtures 
to  us  ?  Who  authorised  you  to  answer  for  '  the  Father  of 
the  Faithful?'  Who  made  the  servant  free  to  give  the 
invitations  of  his  master's  house  ?  Nay,  by  what  right  do 
you,  the  inferior  and  vassal  of  the  pope,  approach  us,  bish- 
ops of  the  Catholic  Church  of  Christ ;  and  so — saving  the 
reverence  due  to  occupancy  of  the  see  in  which  the  apostles 
laboured,  preached  and  died — the  equals  of  the  Bishop  of 
Rome  ;  and,  therefore,  your  superiors  ?  We  are  no  vicars 
of  the  Apostolic  See  as  you  are  ;  but  vicars  of  the  Lord  of 


218  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES! 

Heaven  and  earth.  We  claim  no  personal  regard,  but 
humbly  wash  your  feet,  as  well  becomes  us.  But  if  you 
touch  our  office,  if  you  trench  upon  our  trust,  which  we 
received  from  Christ,  and  hold  for  Him  and  Him  alone,  we 
plainly  say  to  you,  that,  if  the  Bishop  of  Rome,  our  fellow 
bishop,  be  your  superior,  you  may  choose  what  name  or 
place  you  will,  but  bishops  in  the  catholic  sense,  as  we  are, 
we  allow  you  not  to  be. 

"  To  any  proper  communication  which  the  Bishop  of 
Rome  shall  ever  make  to  the  bishops  of  the  Church  in  the 
United  States  of  America,  his  office  and  their  own  will  be 
a  certain  guarantee  of  due  reception,  and  respectful  answer. 
To  such  an  invitation  as  the  "  Bishop  of  Arath"  undertakes 
to  make  for  him,  we  reply  not  at  all !  We  respect  our 
order — we  revere  the  catholic  doctrine — we  reverence  the 
Word  of  God  too  much !  We  place  ourselves  at  once  upon 
the  ground  of  ephesus,  and  utterly  repudiate  an  interfer- 
ence so  insulting  !  We  are  freemen — born  free. — We  che- 
rish, as  a  sacred  trust,  for  those  that  shall  come  after  us, 
that  liberty,  wherewith  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  deliverer 
of  all  men,  has  endowed  us  by  his  own  blood.  We  are 
bishops  of  the  Church  of  God ;  and  recognising  no  higher 
office  in  the  Church  save  His  who  is  the  "  shepherd,  and 
bishop  of  souls"  we  "  give  place"  to  the  Bishop  of  Rome, 
"  by  subjection,  no,  not  for  an  hour." 

"  Not  knowing  what  my  brethren  the  bishops  of  the 
"  Protestant  Episcopal  Church"  in  the  United  States,  to 
whom  it  is  also  addressed,  may  say  to  your  extraordinary 
proposition  to  become  romanists,  I  have  the  honour  of 
returning  you  the  following  answer  for  myself: 

"  That  branch  of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church,  (not  Ro- 
man) in  America,  whose  bishops  you  have  thought  proper 
to  address,  and  invite  to  leave  their  parent  and  primitive 


"  ROMAN    CATHOLIC"    SOCIETY    IN    AMERICA.         219 

stock,  the  Vine  Christ  Jesus,  whose  only  '  Husbandman  is 
God  the  Father,'  to  be  engrafted  in  the  Roman  Church,  is 
cherished  by  the  blood  of  her  martyrs.  You  cannot  be 
ignorant  that  we  are  all  deeply  conscious  of  the  fact  of 
these  martyrs  having  died  rather  than  own  the  corrupted 
creed  of  the  Romish  Church,  or  submit  to  the  usurpation 
of  her  self-created  pontiff.  That  it  should  ever  have  en- 
tered your  mind  to  invite  us  to  return  to  that  Church  and 
submit  to  their  hierarchy,  seems  stranger ;  and  that  we 
should  do  it  with  our  eyes  shut,  and  our  tongues  tied,  in 
obedience  to  your  invitation,  is  no  compliment  to  our  un- 
derstanding, and  no  evidence  of  your  humility." 

The  following  morceau  from  the  Bishop  of  Illinois  is 
sufficiently  characteristic : 

"  You  are  pleased  to  say  that  '  you  cannot  come  beyond 
the  precincts  of  the  [Romish]  Church  to  reach  us  in  our 
present  position,  and  therefore  from  afar  you  raise  your 
voice'  to  make  us  hear  your  entreaties  to  come  to  the  pope. 

"  Now,  right  rev.  sir,  we  would  spare  you  the  trouble  of 
raising  your  voice  any  higher,  by  answering  forthwith 
that  we  do  hear ;  and  beg  leave  to  assure  you  that  yon 
being  afar  off  from  us  might  be  matter  of  regret  were  we 
acquainted  with  your  personal  and  private  virtues ;  but  as 
this  is  not  our  happy  lot — as  we  know  you  only  by  your 
present  raised  voice  afar  off:  inviting  us  (I  cannot  say 
tempting  us)  to  commit  a  great  sin  by  acknowledging  a 
spiritual  monarch,  in  calling  the  pope  our  master,  when 
Jesus  Christ  is  our  only  universal  bishop,  as  He  and  He 
only  was  such  to  the  apostles  and  first  bishops  of  the 
Church  in  the  primitive  days,  we  confess  we  do  not  regret 
your  distance  from  us.  If  you  must  '  raise  your  voice ' 
and  cry  aloud  to  us  on  a  subject  so  repugnant  to  our  con- 
science and  so  abhorrent  to  our  feelings,  we  can  only  ex- 


220  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

press  our  sincere  wishes  that  the  distance  between  us  were 
much  greater  than  it  is." 

It  is,  at  least,  just  to  Bishop  Kenrick  to  add  that,  how- 
ever his  right  reverend  opponents  might  suspect  him  of 
dishonesty  in  his  mode  of  approaching  them,  he  did  it  in 
all  good  faith.  He  is  a  gentleman  of  great  Christian  vir- 
tues ;  and  would  surely  not  intentionally  deceive.  His  let- 
ter only  shows  to  what  an  extent  all  parties  in  the  Christian 
world— even  the  Romish  adherents — have  been  misled  and 
hood-winked  in  reference  to  what  is  called  "  the  Oxford 
movement ;"  and  how  universally  the  falsehood  of  the 
semi-dissenting  organs  within  our  own  communion,  (backed 
as  they  are  in  their  unfounded  assertions  by  the  political 
press)  has  succeeded  in  confounding  the  sound  and  healthy 
reformation  going  on  in  the  Church,  in  a  return  to  true 
protestant  principles,  with  the  extravagant  acts,  or  the 
apostacy  to  Rome  of  some  six  or  eight  half-read  or  light- 
headed divines.  The  following  is  Dr.  Kenrick's  notice  of 
the  severe  attacks  of  the  protestant  bishops  : — 

"  All  this  ire  was  excited  by  a  letter — calm,  courteous,  af- 
fectionate— inviting  to  union  and  peace.  Nothing  on  the 
face  of  it  was  alleged  to  be  disrespectful ;  but  it  was  intol- 
erable boldness  in  a  catholic  prelate  to  invite  protestant 
episcopal  bishops  to  abandon  their  peculiar  doctrines  and 
claims,  even  though  one  of  their  own  body  had  seriously 
advised  us,  in  violation  of  our  solemn  oaths  and  steadfast 
convictions,  to  renounce  our  obedience  to  the  successor  of 
St.  Peter.  My  sincerity  was  denied,  and  the  letter  was 
considered  as  ironical.  I  took  them  to  be  hypocrites.  I 
called  on  them  to  become  traitors.  Did  Bishop  Hopkins 
think  us  capable  of  perjury,  when  he  urged  us  to  vindicate 
our  independence  of  pontifical  authority?  I  can  solemnly 
aver  that  I  wrote  that  letter  in  all  sincerity,  and  without 
any  design  of  calling  in  question  the  sincerity  of  those 


"  ROMAN    CATHOLIC"    SOCIETY    IN    AMERICA.         221 

whom  I  addressed.  The  advances  made  at  Oxford,  with 
some  corresponding  symptoms  here,  raised  some  faint  hope 
within  my  bosom  ;  and  I  fancied  that  there  might  be  some 
one  among  the  protestant  episcopal  bishops,  who,  seeing  the 
progress  to  the  ancient  faith  in  the  parent  country,  might 
have  some  yearnings  after  union.  Bishop  Smith  had  de- 
plored the  evils  of  schism,  and  extolled  the  blessings  of  uni- 
ty, and  invited  the  examination  and  full  development  of  his 
principles,  which  he  professed  himself  desirous  of  carrying 
out  to  their  legitimate  consequences.  I  had  shewed  their 
just  application ;  and  my  letter  wTas  favourably  noticed  in 
a  paper  published  under  his  eye,  and  no  answer  was  ever 
attempted.  Might  not  he,  or  some  other  one,  be  secretly 
mourning  over  the  ruins  of  Sion,  and  praying  that  the  walls 
of  Jerusalem  may  be  built  up  1  I  hoped  against  hope,  and 
concluded  that  my  appeal  would  be,  at  least,  an  evidence  of 
the  desire  of  one  catholic  bishop — which  I  was  persuaded 
was  common  to  all — to  procure  a  re-union  at  any  sacrifice 
but  that  of  principle  ;  and  would  throw  on  the  protestant 
bishops  the  responsibility  of  defeating  the  good  work,  to 
which  things  appeared  to  dispose  the  minds  of  men." 

The  quiet  irony  which  twice  discovers  itself  in  this  para- 
graph, applied  to  the  sobriquet  of  the  American  Church, 
is  the  only  thing  in  the  Romanist  doctor's  letter  worthy  of 
notice  ;  beyond  the  sincerity  claimed  for  his  original  inten- 
tions, which  no  one  can  doubt.  It  must  be  admitted  that 
the  tautological  blunder  contained  under  this  clumsy  title 
is  not  less  absurd  than  the  negative  prefix  of  "  protestant," 
used  (in  this  case)  in  contradistinction  to  the  term  catholic. 
Both  were  unwisely  adopted,  against  Bishop  Seaburv's 
judgment,  by  the  Convention  of  17S9  in  compliance  with 
the  demands  of  certain  radical  delegates  from  Virginia  and 
the  South  ;  and  were  deemed  in  the  then  state  of  religious 
feeling  in  the  United  States,  as  due,  in  courtesy,  to  the 


222  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

other  "  ecclesiastical"  bodies  of  the  country.  Such  squeam- 
ishness  was,  however,  wholly  uncalled  for,  as,  besides  the 
assumption  of  the  title  "  Holy  Catholic  Church  in  the  United 
States"  by  the  Romish  intruders,  the  various  dissenting 
bodies  adopted  respectively  such  as  the  following — "  Chris- 
tians," (a  Socinian  baptist  sect)  "  Primitive  Christians,"  (a 
methodist  sect)  "  Disciples,"  etc.,  the  congregationalists  re- 
taining their  title  of  "  the  Standing  Order."  The  tender- 
ness shown  for  the  scruples  and  feelings  of  sectarians  who 
themselves  adopted  titles  no  less  "  arrogant"  than  that  of 
"  The  American  Church,"  or  "  The  Church  of  the  United 
States,"  was  surely  morbid ;  and  the  result  at  this  day,  in 
the  ignorant  misconception  of  terms,  and  the  handle  afford- 
ed to  the  papal  agents  in  America  against  the  "  catholic" 
claims  of  her  apostolic  Church,  prove  too  truly  that  there 
is  something  "  in  a  name."  The  evil,  however,  is  easy 
of  cure. 

As  Bishop  Griswold's  response  to  his  schismatical  brother 
prelate's  invitation  to  "  union "  was  introduced  in  a  work 
on  the  Reformation,  published  in  numbers,  and  only  com- 
pleted just  before  his  sudden  death,  it  will  form  a  suitable 
appendix  to  this.  A  few  days  after  these  catholic  sen- 
tences which  follow  were  written,  but  before  they  passed 
through  the  press,  the  hand  which  penned  them  was  cold 
in  death. 

"  The  Reformation  has  evidently  produced  some  refor- 
mation in  the  Church  of  Rome.  Compare  the  morals  of 
the  court  of  Rome  with  what  they  were  during  the  three 
centuries  previous,  and  you  will  be  surprised  at  the  con- 
trast !  The  power  of  the  court  has  been  very  much 
diminished.  The  thunders  of  the  Vatican,  at  which  the 
world  then  trembled,  are  now  heard  with  pity,  mingled  with 
contempt.  That  infernal  and  horrid  machine  of  popery, 
the  inquisition,  we  trust  in  God  will  not  much  more  be 


"ROMAN    CATHOLIC"    SOCIETY    IN    AMERICA.  223 

tolerated  !  That  lucrative  traffic,  the  sale  of  indul- 
gences, has,  in  consequence  of  the  Reformation,  became 
comparatively  an  unprofitable  business.  The  ungodly 
spirit,  and  bloody  hand  of  persecution  have  been  very 
much  restrained  ;  and  toleration,  on  true  Christian  princi- 
ples is,  happily,  very  much  increased.  In  this  good  work, 
the  Reformation  has  uniformly  taken  the  lead,  and  is  now 
far  ahead.  The  true  spirit  of  missions,  and  efforts  to  con- 
vert the  heathen,  not  by  carnal  weapons,  or  by  hiding  or 
perverting  the  truth — but  by  that  "  sword  of  the  Spirit, 
which  is  the  Word  of  God,"  teaching  man  generally  the 
doctrines  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  him  crucified,  is  also  among 
the  noble  fruits  of  the  Reformation.  The  preaching  of 
the  Roman  clergy  has  been  changed  for  the  better,  espe- 
cially in  protestant  countries.  They  now  preach  less  of 
saints  and  relics,  of  masses  and  purgatory,  of  popes  and 
"  mother  Church,"  and  more  of  Christ. 

"  Should  any  one  ask — seeing  the  Church  of  Rome  has, 
in  some  degree,  reformed— why  we  should  not,  as  the 
Bishop  of  Arath  urges,  "  return  to  it  ?"  I  answer  : — 

"  First.  It  is  a  reformation  forced  upon  it.  The  Ro- 
manists will  tell  you  themselves  that  they  '  never  change  !' 
and, 

';  Secondly.  Why  should  we  go  to  them  ?  Rather  they 
reject  their  errors,  and  unite  with  us.  Have  we  not  the 
words  of  eternal  life  1 

"  Thirdly.  We  never  have  departed  from  the  One 
Catholic,  and  Apostolic  Church.  We  have  merely  rejected 
what  is  unscriptural,  superstitious,  etc.,  etc. 

"  Fourthly.  We  would  gladly,  and  are  ready,  to  unite 
with  them  and  all  Christians  in  whatever  "  is  good  unto 
the  use  of  edifying,"  and  according  to  the  word  of  God  ; 
but— 

Fifthly.     To  unite  with  any  Christains  in  what  is  erro- 


224        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

neous  or  unscriptural,  is  going — not  to  the  true   Catholic 
Church,  but  from  it."* 

May  we  not  hope — nay  without  enthusiasm  believe, — 
that  the  day  may  not  be  very  distant  when  these  words  of 
the  meek  successor  of  "the  beloved  disciple"  will  prove 
'prophetic  ;  in  the  return  of  the  apostatized  adherents  of 
an  intruding  see — drawn  by  the  cords  of  love,  and  the  ac- 
cents of  affectionate  conciliation — to  the  bosom  of  the 
Catholic  Church  of  America ;  and  when  their  incontro- 
vertible truth  will  find  a  home  in  every  breast  now 
enthralled  by  the  claims — unfounded  and  vain — of  a  dis- 
tant power,  whose  rule  and  corrupted  doctrine  are  incom- 
patible both  with  their  own  religious  position,  and  the  due 
liberty  of  American  citizenship  ? 

*  The  Reformation  p.  126. 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 

DR.    HENSHAW. DR.    DORR. FEMALE    HIGH    SCHOOL. 

RETURN    TO    NEW    YORK. 

Before  leaving  Baltimore  I  had  an  opportunity  of  hear- 
ing Dr.  Henshaw  the  rector  of  St.  Peter's,  now  Bishop  of 
Rhode  Island.  The  congregation,  though  on  a  week  day, 
was  as  large  as  the  building  would  accommodate.  Dr.  H. 
showed  great  skill  in  treating  his  subject,  which  was  on  the 
practical  effect  of  soundness  in  doctrine  :  a  most  important 
subject,  less  regarded  both  in  America  and  England  than  it 
ought  to  be.  The  sermon  was  extempore  throughout,  and 
in  the  best  style  of  pulpit  address.  With  a  portly  figure 
and  prepossessing  countenance,  Dr.  Henshaw  combines  a 
fine  voice  and  fluent  utterance.  His  idiom  is  not  loose,  nor 
marked  by  the  vulgarisms,  and  entire  want  of  dignity 
which  American  extempore  preachers  in  the  non-episcopal 
denominations  frequently  exhibit.  I  met  with  a  remarkable 
instance  of  this  style  while  on  a  subsequent  visit  to  Balti- 
more, in  a  preacher  named  Knapp,  who  was  conducting  a 
"  protracted  meeting"  at  the  "  First  Baptist"  meeting  house, 
in  Lombard  Street.  He  was  a  man  of  uncommon  powers, 
and  skilled  in  all  the  tricks  of  popular  oratory,  which  he 
practised  with  the  most  complete  success.  He  preached 
every  day,  and  three  times  on  Sundays  for  a  number  of 
weeks,  drawing  the  whole  city  to  the  meeting  house.  A 
church  adjoining  was  even  closed,  from  the  temporary  de- 
sertion of  the  worshippers  to  listen  to  the  exhibitions  of  the 

15 


226  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

revivalist  preacher,  and  the  number  of  communicants  ad- 
ded to  the  society,  on  whose  behalf  the  visit  was  made, 
was  more  than  quadrupled.  His  sermons,  though  frequent- 
ly admirable,  and  well  adapted  to  a  mixed  auditory,  were 
sometimes  marred  by  the  grossest  vulgarisms  which  even 
bordered  on  profanity.  Puns,  low  proverbs,  familiar  anec- 
dotes, and  dialogues  would  succeed  each  other,  accompanied 
with  gestures,  in  which  the  action  was  suited  to  the  word  ; 
exciting  alternate  risibility  and  sensation,  and  lowering  the 
pulpit  to  the  level  of  the  stage,  making  "the  judicious 
grieve." 

I  left  Baltimore  for  Philadelphia  on  Saturday  the  28th. 
It  was  a  week  most  agreeably  spent ;  and  I  carried  away 
with  me  the  pleasantest  impressions  of  the  place  and  its 
society.  I  have  since  had  numerous  opportunities  of  im- 
proving my  knowledge  of  both,  which  is  only  necessary  to 
confirm  the  best  impressions. 

Philadelphia,  St.  Simon  and  St.  Jade. — In  the  morn- 
ing I  was  attracted  by  the  bells  of  Christ  Church,  to  that 
venerable  edifice.  It  stands  in  the  old  part  of  the  city,  and 
is  nearly  a  century  and  a  half  old,  resembling  the  large 
city  churches  of  England  in  its  general  air  and  internal 
appointments.  Christ  Church  parish  has  existed  from  A.D. 
1691,  and  was  the  cathedral  church  during  Bishop  White's 
administration  of  the  diocess.  The  gilt  mitre  still  orna- 
ments its  graceful  spire. 

Dr.  Benjamin  Dorr,  the  present  rector,  is  a  member  of 
the  Standing  Committee  of  Pennsylvania,  an  attractive 
preacher,  and  an  author  of  considerable  repute.  "  The 
Churchman's  Manual,"  one  of  the  best  treatises  on  the 
doctrine  and  government  of  the  Church  which  has  made 
its  appearance  in  the  United  States,  is  from  his  pen.  It 
contains  an  admirable  defence  of  diocesan  episcopacy,  and 
liturgical   worship,  and   is  well  adapted   to  put   into   the 


BURLINGTON.  227 

hands  of  inquirers  into  the  scriptural  and  primitive  author- 
ity for  our  distinctive  principles.  The  sermon  this  morning 
was  a  missionary  one.  and  was  responded  to  by  a  liberal 
offering  from  a  large  congregation. 

I  spent  the  afternoon  and  evening  at  the  house  of  the 
Rev.  Charles  Alden,  in  Spruce-street,  principal  of  the  Phil- 
adelphia High  School  for  young  ladies.  The  establish- 
ment is  a  favourable  specimen  of  similar  institutions  in  the 
United  States,  its  general  plan  being  similar  to  a  college  ; 
the  pupils  are  carried  through  every  branch  of  useful  and 
ornamental  study,  including  mathematics,  natural  philoso- 
phy, and  the  classics,  and  receive  a  certificate  on  the  com- 
pletion of  their  term  of  residence.  The  teachers,  and  sev- 
eral of  the  pupils  in  this  school  are  highly  accomplished, 
and  everything  in  the  establishment  appeared  to  be  admi- 
rably conducted.* 

On  Tuesday  I  left  Philadelphia  by  the  steamboat,  and 
had  the  opportunity,  which  my  night-journey  thither  had 
prevented,  of  seeing  some  of  the  objects  on  the  first  part  of 
my  way.  The  banks  of  the  river  Delaware  above  the  city, 
are  embellished  with  numerous  farm  houses  and  country 
seats,  their  gardens  and  lawns  sloping  to  the  water's  edge. 
Twenty  miles  from  the  city,  on  the  right,  Burlington,  the 
see  town  of  the  diocess  of  New  Jersey,  appears  in  sight.  It 
is  regularly  laid  out,  and  the  "  Bank"  extending  along  two- 
thirds  of  the  city  exhibits  a  great  variety  of  handsome 
dwellings,  neat  villas,  cottages,  etc.  The  most  conspicuous 
amongst  these  is  the  episcopal  residence,  which  vies  with 
several  English  country  seats  of  the  medium  class.  The 
New  Jersey  bishop's  expansive  doors,  communicating  with 
the  entrance  hall  are  always  open  in  fine  weather,  to  the 
verdant  bank,  with  its  gravelled   carriage   way,  and   the 

*  Mr.  Alden  has  since  accepted  a  chaplaincy  in  the  navy,  and  the  institution 
is  under  a  different  presidency. 


228  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

wide  bosom  of  the  lovely  Delaware,  whose  ripples  wash  the 
beach  within  twenty  miles  of  the  house.  The  building  is 
a  combination  of  different  early  styles,  with  a  cross  on  the 
highest,  turret.  The  grounds  attached  to  it  are  well  laid  out 
in  English  fashion,  and  everything  in,  and  about  the  estab- 
lishment, gives  proof  of  the  well-known  taste  of  its  propri- 
etor. Just  beyond  the  bishop's  house,  the  front  of  St. 
Mary's  Hall  appears  from  between  the  trees.  This  is  one 
of  those  designs  for  the  religious  and  intellectual  improve- 
ment of  the  rising  generation,  which  the  enterprising  bishop 
has  brought  to  maturity  in  his  diocess.  The  object  is  to 
conduct  female  education  on  a  Christian  foundation,  and 
the  principles  of  the  Church.  Bishop  Brownell  of  Con- 
necticut some  time  ago  declared,  "  that  he  considered  fe- 
male seminaries  under  the  auspices  of  the  Church  hardly 
less  important  than  chartered  colleges ;"  and  such  is  becom- 
ing the  established  sentiment  in  the  United  States.  The 
present  enterprise  of  Bishop  Doane  has  already  been  sin- 
gularly successful.  With  the  best  teachers  in  every  de- 
partment of  science,  literature,  and  the  fine  arts,  that  could 
be  procured  in  the  country,  and  a  clerical  principal  and 
chaplain,  and  under  episcopal  supervision,  St.  Mary's  is  tru- 
ly a  christian  household  for  the  future  mothers  of 
New  Jersey,  for  which  the  community  are,  and  will  be,  un- 
der unspeakable  obligations  to  the  excellent  prelate,  its 
founder. 

A  little  further,  on  the  Pennsylvania  side  of  the  river,  is 
the  town  of  Bristol.  It  was  incorporated  by  Sir  William 
Keith  in  1722,  under  this  name,  having  been  previously 
called  Buckingham.  After  leaving  several  passengers  at 
Burlington,  the  boat  crossed  over  to  Bristol  to  land  several 
more,  and  receive  others  ;  it  then  pursued  its  way  to  Bor- 
dentown,  thirty  miles  from  Philadelphia,  where  we  took  the 
railway  cars.     It  was  at  this  place  that  Joseph  Buonaparte 


RETURN    TO    NEW    YORK.  229 

took  up  his  residence  in  America.  His  fine  establishment 
is  now  running  rapidly  to  seed,  and  bears  everywhere  marks 
of  neglect  and  dilapidation.  Forty-five  miles,  the  distance 
across  the  sterile  plains  of  New  Jersey,  had  now  to  be  trav- 
ersed ;  which,  with  the  exception  of  the  two  thriving  vil- 
lages of  Hightstown,  and  Spottswood,  where  the  train  stop- 
ped, presented  no  object  worth  noticing.  At  South  Amboy 
we  took  the  steamboat  for  New  York :  the  trip  having  oc- 
cupied me  eighteen  days. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

BOARDING-HOUSE  LIFE. GENERAL  CONVENTION  OF  1838. 

COLUMBIA    COLLEGE. 

The  time  passed  in  New- York,  before  sailing,  and  after 
my  return  from  England  (where  I  spent  the  Christmas  of 
1837*)  gave  me  an  opportunity  of  improving  my  knowledge 
of  that  city,  and  its  agreeable  society.  None  enjoy  them- 
selves more,  and  enter  into  the  social  amusements  of  the 
winter  season  with  greater  zest,  than  the  New-Yorkers. 
The  boarding-house  in  which  1  was  quartered,  in  Murray 
street,  was  a  favourable  example  of  a  mode  of  living  pecu- 
liar to  the  United  States.  The  house  was  of  the  largest 
size,  being,  in  fact,  two  (double  fronted,  four  story)  houses, 
communicating  on  each  landing,  and  accommodating  about 
fifty  boarders  ;  principally  single  young  men,  professional 
characters,  and  store  keepers,  some  being  married  people. 
The  charge  for  board  and  lodging  depends  upon  the  floor, 
and  the  number  of  chambers  occupied,  graduating  from  six 
dollars  a  week  to  twenty-five.  Meals  were  taken  in  a  ca- 
pacious dining  room  on  the  first  floor,t  which,  like  the  other 
public  rooms,  was  furnished  in  a  style  of  elegance  and 
luxury.  The  table  afforded  every  variety ;  wines  of  all 
kinds  were  furnished  if  wanted ;  the  servants  were  numer- 
ous and  civil,  and  the  whole  establishment  was  like  that  of 
a  large  well-regulated  family.     The  lady  at  the  head  of 

*  See  Appendix  No.  II. 

t  Called  the  "  second-floor"  in  America. 


GENERAL    CONVENTION    OF    1838.  231 

this  household  was  a  strict  churchwoman,  and  a  communi- 
cant of  Grace  church,  under  the  pastoral  care  of  Dr.  Lyall, 
a  clergyman  of  long  standing  in  New  York.  The  regular 
attendance  of  our  hostess,  with  her  family,  on  public  wor- 
ship operated  favourably  on  her  boarders,  many  of  whom 
frequented  the  same  church.  This  boarding-house  was 
much  patronized  by  clergymen  visiting  the  city,  which 
made  it  additionally  agreeable. 

Ecclesiastically,  New  York  is  by  far  the  most  important 
place  in  the  United  States.  The  parishes  are  thirty-one  in 
number,  one  of  which  (Trinity)  is  the  richest  religious  cor- 
poration in  the  country,  holding  several  tracts  of  city  land, 
the  ground-rents  of  which  yield  a  large  annual  sum.  There 
are  two  chapels  of  ease  belonging  to  the  parish,  besides  the 
church,  now  erecting  at  a  cost  of  half  a  million  dollars. 

On  the  fifth  of  September  the  General  Convention  of  the 
American  Church  assembled  in  Philadelphia,  which  I  was 
(sorely  against  my  inclination)  prevented  from  attending. 
The  most  important  act  was  the  appointment  of  the  Rev. 
Leonidas  Polk  to  the  office  of  "Missionary  Bishop"  to  the 
southwestern  territory  of  the  country,  south  of  36^°  with 
the  title  of  ;i  Bishop  of  Arkansas ;"  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
first  missionary  bishop*  to  be  confined  north  of  that  line. 
Indiana,  though  not  a  territory,  was  at  the  same  time  placed 
under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  latter.  It  was  also  provided 
"  that  in  case  of  the  death  or  resignation  of  a  missionary 
bishop  the  Presiding  Bishop  of  the  Church  shall  be.  and  is 
hereby  authorised  to  request  one  of  the  neighbouring  bish- 
ops to  take  charge  of  the  vacant  missionary  episcopate  un- 
til the  meeting  of  the  next  General  Convention." 

Dr.  Kemper's  appointment,  in  1835,  had  been  followed 
by  the  best  results  !  From  one  missionary  who  was  toiling 
single  and  unaided  in  his  wide  field  of  labour  at  the  time 
*  Kemper. 


232  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

of  the  bishop's  removal  thither,  an  increase  had  been  effect- 
ed of  twelve  settled  clergymen,  and  more  than  thirty  con- 
gregations. The  Indians  had  been  visited,  and  many  con- 
verts made  amongst  them  to  the  catholic  faith. 

It  was  also  determined  to  add  to  the  foreign  missionaries 
by  sending  two  to  Constantinople,  another  to  the  one  al- 
ready in  China,  another  to  Cape  Palmas,  and  another  to 
Texas.  Three  new  canons  were  passed,  and  seven  old 
ones  amended.  Of  the  former,  the  first  made  candidates 
for  orders  ineligible  to  seats  in  the  General  Convention ; 
the  second  related  to  the  organizing  of  new  diocesses  out  of 
existing  diocesses,  and  the  third  to  repealed  canons.* 

The  Bishop  of  Ohio,  on  behalf  of  a  committee  appointed 
on  the  subject  of  emigrating  to  and  from  foreign  Churches, 
reported  "  that  it  is  absolutely  essential  to  the  proper  dis- 
cipline of  this  Church,  that  no  clergyman  from  a  foreign 
(episcopal)  Church,  should  be  received  into  union  with  any 
diocess  in  these  United  States,  except  he  bring  a  regular 
and  formal  dismissory  letter  from  the  foreign  bishop  whose 
diocess  he  was  last  connected  with ;  and  further,  that  when 
so  received,  he  should  be  regarded  on  all  sides  as  having 
entirely  passed  from  the  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction  of  the 
bishop  from  whom  the  letter  dismissory  is  brought,  to  that 
of  the  bishop  by  whom  it  is  accepted  ;  and  further,  that 
in  the  opinion  of  this  House  no  such  clergyman,  or  any 
other,  desirous  of  passing  from  the  Church  in  these  United 
States  to  that  of  any  foreign  state,  ought  to  be  received  by 
any  foreign  bishop  into  connection  with  his  diocess,  except 
upon  the  receipt  of  a  regular  and  formal  dismissory  letter 
from  the  bishop  within  whose  jurisdiction  he  was  last  con- 
nected here  ;  and  that  when  thus  accepted,  and  only  then, 
he  be  considered  as  discharged  from  all  obligations  of  a 
canonical  obedience  to  the  discipline  of  this  Church." 

*  See  Appendix. 


GENERAL    CONVENTION    OF    1838.  233 

"Whereupon  the  Presiding  Bishop  was  appointed  to  enter 
into  correspondence  with  the  different  foreign  primates,  for 
the  purpose  of  arranging  as  soon  as  possible  a  general  con- 
currence in  the  above  regulations,  and  to  report  to  the 
House  of  Bishops  at  the  next  General  Convention. 

Incipient  measures  were  also  taken  for  the  formation 
of  a  Bible  Society  in  connection  with  the  Church,  which 
design  was  perfected  at  the  General  Convention  of  1844. 

The  convention  also  ratified  the  act  of  dividing  New 
York  state  into  two  diocesses. 

The  Rev.  Samuel  F.  Jarvis,  D.D.,  L.L.D.  was  appointed 
"Historiographer  of  the  Church,"  with  a  view  "to  his  pre- 
paring from  the  most  original  sources  now  extant,  a  faith- 
ful Ecclesiastical  History,  reaching  from  the  apostles'  times 
to  the  formation  of  the  Protestant  Epsicopal  Church  in  the 
United  States ;"  and  Dr.  Francis  Hawkes,  the  "  Conserva- 
tor" of  all  the  books,  pamphlets,  manuscripts,  &c,  of  the 
Church,  was  requested  "  to  prepare  at  his  earliest  conve- 
nience a  condensed  view  of  the  documents  he  has  collect- 
ed, so  as  to  form  a  connected  history  of  the  latter." 

The  bishops  on  first  coming  together  at  this  Convention 
adopted  the  following  resolutions  : 

"  Resolved,  That  in  organising  the  House  of  Bishops  for 
the  business  of  another  Convention,  we  cannot  refrain  from 
the  expression  of  the  lively  sensibility  which  we  feel  at  the 
loss  of  our  venerable  brother,  who  has  so  long  presided 
over  our  deliberations. 

"  Resolved,  That  we  shall  ever  cherish  an  affectionate 
remembrance  of  the  person  and  services  of  our  deceased 
brother,  the  Rt.  Rev.  William  White,  D.D.  ;  grateful  to 
Almighty  God  for  his  long  continued  usefulness  to  the 
Church,  and  mindful  of  the  bright  example  he  has  left  us, 
in  the  purity  of  his  life,  the  integrity  of  his  purposes,  the 


234  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

wisdom  and  moderation  of  his  counsel,  and  the  benignity  of 
his  entire  character." 

The  General  Theological  Seminary  at  New  York  is  a 
fine  Church  institution,  which  I  occasionally  visited,  and 
where  I  formed  an  intimacy  with  several  of  the  students, 
whom  I  found  indefatigable  scholars.  It  was  first  estab- 
lished through  the  instrumentality  of  the  late  Bishop  Ho- 
bart,  about  twenty  years  ago,  as  a  divinity  school.  All 
the  bishops  of  the  Church  are  trustees  ;  the  professorships, 
five .  There  are  also  twelve  handsomely  endowed  scholar- 
ships. The  requirements  for  admission  are,  evidences  of 
being  a  candidate  for  orders,  and  a  college  diploma, — or  the 
test  of  an  examination  in  Latin,  Greek  and  Hebrew,  with 
natural  and  moral  philosophy,  and  rhetoric.  To  the  latter, 
Sallust,  Virgil,  Cicero,  the  Gospels,  and  Zenophon's  Cyro- 
pcedia,  and  the  three  first  books  of  Homer  are  sufficient. 
There  are  three  classes  (senior,  middle,  and  junior) ;  and 
at  the  completion  of  the  whole  course  the  student  receives  a 
testimonial  of  the  same  signed  by  the  professors,  and  coun- 
tersigned by  any  number  of  the  trustees.  The  whole  ex- 
pense of  the  three  years,  including  board,  washing,  fuel, 
lights,  etc.,  can  be  comprised  within  a  hundred  pounds. 

The  seminary  buildings  are  of  stone,  in  the  plain  Gothic 
style,  and  contain  the  usual  departments  of  private  recita- 
tion rooms,  library,  chapel,  refectory,  and  professors'  apart- 
ments; it  is  built  for  104  students.  A  prospect  of  great 
beauty  is  commanded  from  the  windows  of  the  swelling 
bosom  of  the  Hudson  River,  and  the  opposite  shores  of  New 
Jersey. 

On  Thursday,  October  the  2nd,  I  witnessed  the  "  Com- 
mencement" of  Columbia  College,  another  Church  institu- 
tion, which  Mr.  Bristed,  in  his  elaborate  work  entitled 
"  America  and  her  resources,"  says  "  ought  to  surpass  any 
other  college  in  the  Union."     Yale  and  Harvard,  however, 


COLUMBIA    COLLEGE.  235 

have  double  the  number  of  students.  To  give  the  reader 
some  idea  of  college  pageants  in  the  United  States,  I  will 
present  the  order  observed  on  this  occasion.  The  proces- 
sion moved  from  College  Green  at  9  a.  m.  and  proceeded 
to  Trinity  church  as  follows  : — 

Janitor  of  the  College 

Students  of  Arts 

Candidates  for  Bachelor's  Degrees 

Bachelors  of  Arts 

Candidates  for  Master's  Degrees 

Masters  of  Arts 

Members  of  various  Societies 

Students  of  the  General  Theological  Seminary 

Principal  of  the  Public  Schools 

Teachers  of  the  Grammar  Schools  of  the  College 

Graduates  of  the  Colleges 

Faculty  of  Arts  of  the   College 

President  of  the  College 

Trustees 

Governor   of  the  State 

Lieutenant  Governor 

Members    of    the    Legislature 

The  Mayor 

Foreign  Ministers 

Judges  of  the  different  Courts 

City  Members  of  Congress 

Strangers  of  Distinction 

Foreign  Consuls 

City     Corporation 

Bishop  of  the  diocess 

The    Reverend,    the    Clergy 

Professors  of  the  Theological  Seminary 

Officers  of  the  State 

City  and  County  Officers. 


236        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

The  exercises  in  the  Church  opened  with  a  prayer  by 
the  president,  Dr.  Duer ;  the  candidates  for  the  degree 
Allium  Baccalaureus  next  pronounced  speeches  and  re- 
ceived medals.  Other  students  then  received  the  degree 
Artiimi  Magister.  Some  honorary  degrees  were  conferred ; 
the  Valedictory  spoken  by  a  graduate  ;  and  the  proceedings 
closed  with  the  benediction. 

The  candidates  for  degrees  on  this,  as  on  all  similar  oc- 
casions in  the  United  States,  wore  under  graduates'  gowns, 
which  is  the  only  time  they  are  used,  and  the  principal  of- 
ficers their  appropriate  college  costume,  which  is  the  same 
in  each  university  where  any  habit  is  used. 


CHAPTER  XXXVII. 

PHILADELPHIA. DR.     TYNG. JOURNEY     TO     THE     INTE- 
RIOR.  LEWISTOWN. HARRISBURGH. SETTLEMENT 

IN    MY    SECOND    PARISH. 

Proud  Susquehanna !   Thou  art  still  untamed : 

Art  foils  thy  noble  features  to  subdue 

Since  first  the  red  man  thy  wild  waters  named, 

Or  on  thy  bosom  plied  his  light  canoe. 

Small  change  is  thine — tho'  man  has  snatched  thy  vales 

To  build  his  cities,  and  his  fields  to  spread, 

Yet  all  in  vain,  presumptuous  art  assails 

Thy  mountain  b<  irders,  and  thy  rocky  bed. 

Small  change  is  thine— yet,  River,  thou  hast  seen 

Races  and  nations  perish  on  thy  shores. 

But  what  to  thee  is  man  1  all  he  has  been, 

Or  all  he  loves,  possesses,  or  deplores  1 

Ephemeral  man !   Thou  seest  him  pass  away, 

While  thy  enduring  youth  time  cannot  sear. 

He  labours,  loves,  and  weeps  his  little  day 

And  lo!  he  is  not— and  yet  thou  still  art  here 

Here,  in  the  unmarr'd  wilderness  of  thy  prime : 

No  imprint  of  thy  Maker's  hand  defaced 

In  all  thy  lineaments  unchanged  by  time, 

The  finger  of  Omnipotence  is  traced. 

Adieu  bright  River — memory  shall  the  while, 

Oft  bring  thy  deep  blue  waters  to  my  dreams ; 

Each  frowning  border,  and  each  flowering  isle, 

And  eddies  dancing  in  the  noonday  beams. 

I  remained  some  time  in  New  York,  in  hopes  of  ob- 
taining a  parochial  charge  in  the  south  of  that  state,  where 
some  friends  of  a  younger  sister  who  had  accompanied  me 
on  my  return  to  America,  resided.  By  the  bishop's  invita- 
tion I  waited  over  the  meeting  of  the  diocesan  Convention, 
now  at  hand,  in  the  prospect  of  a  vacancy  occurring.  In 
this  I  was  disappointed,  and  therefore  removed  to  Penn- 
sylvania, recommended  by  the  bishop  to  the  Rev.  Dr.  I)e- 
lancey,  rector  of  St.  Peter's  in  Philadelphia. 


238        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

My  stay  in  Philadelphia  introduced  me  to  several  of  the 
clergy,  among  whom,  besides  the  rector  of  St.  Peter's, 
Messrs.  Dor*  and  Clemson  gave  me  encouragement  to 
settle  in  the  diocess.  Dr.  Delancey  interested  himself  to 
procure  me  a  parish  just  vacant  in  Wyoming  Valley,  but 
an  incumbent  had  been  appointed  on  the  very  day  of  his 
application ;  I  therefore  determined  on  making  a  tour  into 
the  interior  of  the  state,  to  which  my  clerical  friends  fur- 
nished me  with  letters. 

The  evening  before  my  departure  I  received  high  grati- 
fication from  listening  to  a  distinguished  preacher  and 
polemic  in  the  person  of  Dr.  Tyng,  rector  of  the  Epiphany. 
This  gentleman  enjoys  a  large  share  of  public  esteem  on 
account  of  his  independence  of  thought  and  action  ;  refus- 
ing to  be  fettered  by  any  party  shackles  in  pursuing  a 
course,  which  frequently  places  him  in  a  situation  equally 
removed  from  the  two  parties  which  are  represented, 
(though  in  very  unequal  proportions,)  in  the  American 
Church.  Like  a  distinguished  legal  nobleman,  in  his  par- 
liamentary course,  all  questions  are  judged  of  by  their  in- 
herent merit,  without  reference  to  the  school  or  faction 
whence  they  emanate,  and  are  supported  or  opposed  accord- 
ingly. 

The  church  of  the  Epiphany  is  externally  one  of  the 
handsomest  in  the  city,  with  a  large  portico  in  front,  sup- 
ported by  a  double  row  of  pillars.  Dr.  Tyng  (who  is  now 
preferred  to  St.  George's,  New  York)  was  rector  of  the 
parish  twelve  years. 

I  set  out  on  my  journey  on  Thursday  the  18th  of  Octo- 
ber, taking  the  railroad  cars  for  Columbia,  a  town  on  the 
Susquehanna.  The  road  lies  through  one  of  the  most 
fertile  regions  in  the  United  States ;  the  farms,  by  univer- 
sal acknowledgment,  superior  to  any  in  the  country  except 
Western  New  York.     Everything  in  this  section  shows  an 


JOURNEY    TO    THE    INTERIOR.  239 

equal  degree  of  cultivation  to  the  agricultural  districts  of 
England. 

The  principal  place  through  which  we  passed,  and 
which  I  afterwards  visited  more  than  once,  was  Lancaster, 
formerly  the  capital  city  of  Pennsylvania,  and  now  the 
third  in  importance.  Like  Philadelphia,  the  streets  which 
are  well  built,  cross  each  other  at  right  angles.  There  are 
a  college,  and  several  public  schools  here,  with  the  usual 
complement  of  public  offices,  for  the  more  particular  de- 
scription of  which,  see  the  Gazetteer.  St.  James  church, 
the  only  episcopal  place  of  worship,  is  a  noble  structure, 
attended  exclusively  by  the  wealthy  citizens. 

At  Columbia  we  took  the  canal  boat,  which  left  a  short 
time  after  our  arrival  for  the  western  route  to  Pittsburgh 
and  the  Ohio  river.  The  views  on  the  Susquehanna  river 
are  picturesque  in  the  extreme,  and  are  considered  by  some 
equal  in  grandeur  and  variety  to  those  of  the  Hudson. 
My  own  experience,  however,  belies  this  overpartial  esti- 
mate ;  though  it  must  be  confessed,  the  finest  English  river 
scenery  sinks  into  insignificance  when  compared  with  the 
numerous  views  of  land  and  lake,  in  almost  every  state  I 
have  visited  in  America. 

After  passing  Marietta,  Bainbridge,  and  York  Haven, 
three  inconsiderable  towns,  the  darkness  which  came  on 
apace  shut  out  the  view,  and  on  coming  on  deck  in  the 
morning  we  were  near  Harrisburgh,  the  capital  of  the 
state. 

A  few  miles  beyond  Harrisburgh  the  scenery  assumes  a 
wild  and  magnificent  appearance,  which  continued  till  we 
reached  the  confluence  of  the  river  with  its  tributary,  the 
Juniata,  seventeen  miles  beyond  Harrisburgh.  Here  a 
scene  of  surpassing  grandeur  and  beauty  presents  itself; 
the  canal,  which  is  borne  up  by  an  immense  stone  wall  ex- 
tending from  the  Blue  Mountain  Gap  to  Duncan's  Island, 


240  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

enters  the  Juniata  valley ;  mountain  peaks  rise  one  above 
another  on  either  side,  and  one  continuous  scene  of  loveli- 
ness enchants  the  eye  of  the  traveller  till  he  reaches  Lewis- 
town  ; — how  far  beyond  I  am  unable  to  say  from  personal 
survey,  as  there  I  landed,  after  travelling  seventy-two  miles 
by  railroad,  and  one  hundred  by  canal. 

Lewistown  is  the  shire  town  of  Mifflin  county,  contains 
several  thousand  inhabitants,  and  is  finely  situated  on  the 
north  bank  of  the  river.  I  spent  a  day  in  climbing  over 
the  mountains  which  close  it  in  on  the  north,  and  felt  a 
wish  that  it  might  prove  the  place  of  my  ministerial  la- 
bours ;  but  such  was  not  to  be  the  case.  A  former  incum- 
bent of  the  parish,  to  whom  application  had  been  made  to 
supply  the  vacancy  in  the  rectorship,  replied  by  accepting 
the  offer,  and  his  letter  reached  whilst  I  was  in  the  town. 
I  preached  twice  in  the  neat  brick  church  of  St.  Mark  on 
Sunday,  and  on  Tuesday  morning  left  for  Harrisburgh. 
Here  I  met  with  a  cordial  reception  from  Mr.  Peacock,  and 
the  Rev.  Charles  V.  Kelly  the  excellent  rector  of  St.  Ste- 
phen's, to  which  he  was  just  removed  from  St.  Bartholo- 
mew's in  New  York.  He  had  relinquished  a  populous 
parish  and  a  large  salary  from  his  country  predilections 
and  aversion  to  a  city  life. 

Though  I  had  preached  in  Mr.  Kelly's  pulpit  while  stay- 
ing in  New  York,  this  was  the  first  time  of  our  meeting ; 
and  the  interview  gave  rise  to  a  mutual  wish  that  I  should 
fix  myself  in  the  neighbourhood,  which  the  agreeable  asso- 
ciations of  Harrisburgh  made  additionally  tempting.  The 
only  vacancy  now  remaining  in  the  diocess  was  York,  the 
county  town  to  the  adjoining  county  of  the  same  name,  and 
twenty  miles  from  Harrisburgh.  The  congregation  there 
had  been  represented  to  me  as  much  reduced  from  deaths 
and  the  removal  of  several  of  the  principal  families,  and  in 
other  respects  as  so  unpromising  a  field  that  I  had  declined 


MY    SECOND    PARISH.  241 

the  offer  of  a  letter  to  the  vestry  made  me  in  Philadelphia. 
Whilst  in  Harrisburgh  I  changed  my  mind,  and  taking  a 
letter  from  Mr.  Peacock  to  one  of  the  churchwardens,  I 
made  a  visit  to  York  and  preached  there  the  following 
Sunday.  On  the  next  day  the  rectorship  of  the  parish 
was,  by  an  unanimous  vote  of  the  vestry,  tendered  to  me, 
and  the  bishop,  concurring  in  the  election,  instituted  me 
on  his  next  visitation  to  that  part  of  the  diocess  after  my 
promotion  to  priest's  orders — which  latter  event  took  place 
in  St.  Peter's  church,  Philadelphia,  on  Sunday  the  3rd  of 
February,  1839. 

The  latter  occasion,  in  opening  an  acquaintance  with 
one  of  my  fellow  candidates  for  the  priesthood,  proved  the 
first  step  towards  the  formation  of  another  connection  be- 
sides that  of  a  sacerdotal  union  to  the  Church. 

16 


CHAPTER  XXXVIII. 

[OLD]    YORK. 

York  in  Pennsylvania  is  one  of  the  first  settled  towns 
in  that  state,  coeval  with  Philadelphia,  Bristol,  Chester, 
Reading,  and  Lancaster,  and  laid  out  by  William  Penn, 
the  founder  of  Pennsylvania ;  who  if  he  exhibited  but 
little  taste  in  the  plans  of  the  cities  and  towns  which  he 
founded,  was  particularly  happy  in  fixing  their  sites.  Of 
this  York  is  a  proof ;  its  situation  in  the  midst  of  a  fertile, 
wide  extended  vale,  and  on  the  banks  of  a  navigable  river, 
near  the  centre  of  the  county,  render  it  an  eligible  position 
for  a  shire  town,  and  a  market. 

In  the  old  court  house,  Congress  assembled  during  the 
revolutionary  war,  when  driven  from  Philadelphia,  and  here 
a  "  tory  parson "  who  persisted  in  praying  for  his  majesty 
George  the  Third  was  ducked  in  the  river  for  his  loyalty, 
and  discharged  from  his  cure  by  a  more  summary  and 
effectual  mode  of  ejectment,  than  an  episcopal  mandate 
could  effect  in  these  days  of  appeal. 

St.  John's  church,  the  parish  temple  of  my  congregation, 
was  built  before  the  Revolution,  and  had  formerly  been  one 
of  only  four  churches  in  the  state.  It  was  a  substantial 
edifice  ;  the  walls  of  the  same  solidity  as  the  generality  of 
country  churches  in  England,  and  standing  in  a  pleasant 
retired  part  of  the  town.  Here  I  ministered  for  two  years, 
observing  every  canonical  day  in  the  ecclesiastical  calen- 
dar, though  frequently  on  the  lesser  festivals  with  scarce 


YORK.  243 

half  a  dozen  fellow-worshippers.  My  devoted  companion 
proved  an  admirable  fellow-helper  in  my  pastoral  duties, 
and  a  sharer  in  my  schemes  of  relaxation,  which,  however, 
never  extended  beyond  a  day's  fishing,  or  a  visit  to  a  coun- 
try parishioner.  Our  course  was,  therefore,  a  smooth  and 
even  one,  made  doubly  so  by  the  attentions  and  liberality 
of  my  congregation.  As  there  are  many  circumstances  con- 
nected with  the  history  of  the  parish  at  York  highly  credit- 
able to  several  of  my  predecessors  in  the  office  of  pastor, 
and  to  the  Venerable  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the 
Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts  to  which  it  owes  its  foundation, 
I  cannot  forbear  in  this  place  giving  a  brief  sketch  of  it. 

The  church  building  was  erected  in  1766-7  at  the  same 
time  with  the  churches  at  Lancaster  and  Reading,  and 
when  the  Rev.  John  Andrews  was  missionary  from  the 
"  Venerable  Society"  in  this  and  Cumberland  counties. 
The  pews  were  let  out  by  the  year,  which  is  still  a  rule  of 
the  parish,  and  out  of  these  pew  holders  the  vestry,  ten  in 
number,  were  and  still  are  annually  chosen.  Mr.  Andrews 
left  York  to  take  possession  of  the  parish  of  St.  James  at 
Bristol  in  Bucks  county,  and  was  subsequently  made  Pro- 
vost of  the  University  of  Pennsylvania.  To  him  suc- 
ceeded, in  1773,  the  Rev.  Daniel  Batwell,  likewise  an  Eng- 
lishman, who  being  a  loyalist  and  exposed  to  the  violence 
of  the  revolutionary  agents,  withdrew  from  this  country  at 
the  period  of  the  Revolution,  and  was  presented  by 
George  the  Third  to  a  parish,  where  he  died. 

In  1774,  the  year  of  Mr.  Batwell's  "  induction,"  the  bell 
was  presented  to  the  church  by  Queen  Caroline,  consort  of 
George  the  Second,  with  whose  character  as  delineated  by 
the  graphic  pen  of  Scott  in  the  "  Heart  of  Mid  Lothian,"  it 
is  presumed  the  reader  is  familiar. 

After  the  Revolution,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Campbell  was  called 
to  the  rectorship  of  the  church  in  1784,  and  continued  over 


244  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

it  for  twenty  years.  To  the  exertions  of  this  gentleman 
the  congregation  are  indebted  for  the  parsonage  house,  and 
the  county  at  large  for  the  academy  adjoining  it ;  the 
money  for  erecting  which  was  collected  by  him,  principally 
in  the  cities  of  Philadelphia,  Baltimore,  and  Lancaster. 
He  served  the  congregation  faithfully  during  the  period  of 
his  incumbency,  though  it  somewhat  declined  before  he 
left,  through  the  proselyting  efforts  of  sectarian  preachers  ; 
a  large  portion  of  his  flock  were  drawn  off,  and  formed  into 
a  presbyterian  congregation  at  the  other  end  of  the  town. 
He  shortly  afterwards  removed  to  the  parish  of  St.  John, 
Carlisle,  and  here  he  laboured  very  acceptably  till  his 
death. 

After  Mr.  Campbell's  departure,  the  parish  remained 
without  a  rector  till  April  1810,  when  the  Rev.  John  Arm- 
strong was  chosen ;  he  left  in  May,  1819.  During  his 
ministry  the  church  was  presented  with  a  handsome  brass 
chandelier  by  the  members  of  St.  Paul's  congregation  in 
Baltimore.  The  Rev.  Grandison  Aisquith  was  next  insti- 
tuted, and  served  two  years.  To  him  succeeded  in  March 
1821  the  Rev.  George  B.  Sehaeffer,  who  was  followed  in 
the  year  1823  by  the  Rev.  (now.  Dr.)  Charles  Williams, 
who  remained  till  the  spring  of  1825  ;  this  gentleman  was 
related  to  Lord  Chancellor  Thurlow,  and  left  England  in 
deacon's  orders.  He  greatly  improved  the  parsonage  house 
by  new  roofing  and  flooring  it,  and  did  much  for  the  benefit 
of  the  congregation  generally.  In  the  spring  of  1825  he 
was  elected  principal  of  Baltimore  College.  He  now  re- 
sides in  Philadelphia. 

The  Rev.  Richard  D.  Hall  followed  Dr.  Williams,  and 
enjoyed  a  good  share  of  popularity  for  three  years ;  his 
wife's  remains  are  in  the  churchyard. 

On  Easter  day  1829  the  Rev.  John  V.  E.  Thorn  was  en- 
gaged as  an  occasional  supply — after  which  the  estate  went 


YORK.  245 

very  much  into  decay.  Members  had  died  off,  or  joined 
other  congregations,  and  the  few  remaining  were  discour- 
aged by  the  frequent  changes  in  the  rectorship.  In  1834 
the  Rev.  Benjamin  Hutchins  received  an  invitation  to  take 
charge  of  the  parish,  and  greatly  were  the  congregation  in- 
debted to  that  zealous  missionary  labourer  for  his  voluntary 
and  unpaid  services.  He  exerted  himself  to  gather  the 
scattered  members,  and  during  the  eighteen  months  that 
he  was  at  York,  expended  between  eight  and  nine  hundred 
dollars  in  improving  both  church  and  parsonage  ;  besides 
presenting  the  parish  with  a  handsome  set  of  silver  com- 
munion plate.  Going  hence  to  another  field  of  labour,  his 
place  was  supplied  by  the  Rev.  Walter  E.  Franklin,  who 
served  two  years,  and  left  in  August  1838,  a  few  weeks  be- 
fore the  writer  took  charge  of  the  parish. 

From  this  brief  outline,  it  appears  that  within  a  century 
this  congregation  has  had  twelve  successive  pastors,  and 
that  during  the  last  forty  years  the  average  term  of  resi- 
dence has  been  two  years  each  :  a  good  practical  illustra- 
tion this  of  the  voluntary  system. 


CHAPTER  XXXIX. 

THE    CHURCH    IN    DELAWARE.— PENNSYLVANIAN 
CONVENTION. 

The  time,  however,  arrived,  though  much  before  our 
wishes,  for  my  companion  to  rejoin  her  English  friends. 
In  the  second  spring  of  my  connexion  with  York  her  return 
being  deemed  necessary,  a  visit  to  Niagara  Falls  was  de- 
cided upon  before  her  departure  from  American  scenes. 
After  a  month  spent  amongst  friends  in  Philadelphia,  I 
joined  her  in  that  city  on  the  7th  of  May. 

Before  commencing  our  journey,  I  received  a  request 
from  Mr.  M'Calla  of  Wilmington  to  take  his  duty  the  fol- 
lowing Sunday.  The  distance  to  Wilmington  by  the  rail- 
road is  twenty-seven  miles.  It  is  the  metropolis  of  the  ad- 
joining state  of  Delaware,  finely  situated  on  the  river 
Brandywine  near  its  junction  with  the  Delaware  river. 
The  road  passes  through  a  beautiful  country,  and  the  old 
town  of  Chester,  settled  long  before  the  grant  of  the  colony 
to  William  Penn. 

There  are  two  populous  parishes  and  churches  in  Wil- 
mington, besides  several  resident  clergy.  I  received  a  hos- 
pitable welcome  from  Mr.  Bradford,  one  of  the  churchward- 
ens, whose  house  surrounded  by  grounds  laid  out  in  the 
English  style,  about  half  a  mile  from  the  town,  proved  the 
abode  of  hospitality  and  refinement. 

I  heard  much  of  the  history  of  the  Church  in  Delaware 
during  this  visit  that  awakened  my  interest  and  sympathies. 


PENNSYLVANIA   CONVENTION    OF    1840.  247 

It  is  one  of  those  regions  whose  spiritual  wants  were  early- 
supplied  by  the  Venerable  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the 
Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts,  with  that  liberality  which  has 
marked  all  its  proceedings  from  its  institution,  though  the 
Church  of  Sweden  has  the  honour  of  having  first  planted 
it.*  Before  the  Revolution  there  were  forty  churches  in  this 
state  erected  by  the  Society,  or  through  the  efforts  of  its 
missionaries.  Many  of  these  are  in  ruins,  and  only  four- 
teen clergymen  now  belong  to  the  diocess  besides  the 
bishop,  two  of  them  being  attached  to  the  college  of  New- 
ark. The  bishop's  chair  is  in  St.  Andrew's  church,  Wil- 
mington. 

On  Tuesday  the  19th  of  May,  the  second  Convention  of 
Pennsylvania  since  my  connection  with  the  diocess  assem- 
bled in  Philadelphia,  in  which  I  took  my  seat.  The  pro- 
ceedings in  Pennsylvania  conventions  are  very  similar  to 
those  described  in  a  former  chapter.  The  Convention  ser- 
mon on  this  occasion  was  by  the  Rev.  John  Rodney,  Rector 
of  St.  Luke's,  Germantown,  and  was  a  sound  and  masterly 
defence  of  the  peculiar  doctrines  of  the  Church.  The  min- 
isterial commission  afforded  him  a  theme,  on  which,  in  its 
origin,  privileges,  and  responsibilities,  he  enlarged  with 
great  fulness  and  power ;  concluding  his  discourse  by  ex- 
hibiting to  the  assembled  clergy  the  Church  in  her  true 
character,  as  the  nursing  mother  of  her  people,  in  their  in- 
fancy, their  religious  training,  their  guardianship,  their  con- 
firmation, their  spiritual  sustenance  in  the  Eucharist,  their 
constant  counsellor,  and  their  ghostly  comforter  in  the  hour 
of  death  ;  exhorting  his  brethren  in  the  priesthood  to  "  make 
full  proof  of  their  ministry,"  by  a  faithful  and  diligent  dis- 
charge of  their  parochial  duties. 

*  With  the  same  "  nursing  care"  while  Delaware  remained  a  Swedish  colony 
that  the  English  Church  showed  to  its  western  progeny.  The  oldest  episcopal 
churches  in  Delaware,  and  those  in  Pensylvania,  were  built  by  the  Swedes. 


248  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES- 

The  diocess  of  Pennsylvania  is  the  tenth  in  the  United 
States  in  territorial  extent,  and  the  third  in  population,  and 
in  the  number  of  clergy. 

The  rites  of  hospitality,  though  not  wholly  disregarded 
by  the  clergy  and  laity  of  the  cities  and  towns  of  the  mid- 
dle states,  are  less  understood  than  in  the  north  or  south. 
A  convention,  or  clerical  gathering  of  any  kind  in  New 
England  is  a  signal  for  invitations  to  every  person  officially 
attending  ;  in  which  there  is  frequently  a  struggle  among 
the  good  church  people  of  the  town  for  the  largest  number 
of  guests,  who  not  only  partake  of  the  hospitality  of  the 
table,  but  are  received  as  temporary  inmates  of  the  family. 
The  contrast  to  this  reception  in  Philadelphia  is  sufficiently 
striking  ;  where  the  country  clergy  think  themselves  fortu- 
nate enough  if  they  get  a  solitary  invitation  to  dinner  during 
the  sitting  of  Convention,  and  are  driven  to  the  boarding 
houses  and  taverns  for  lodging,  which  their  slender  resour- 
ces frequently  make  a  serious  tax. 

The  Convention  was  attended  by  the  Right  Rev.  Dr. 
Kemper  "  Missionary  Bishop  of  the  North  Western  Terri- 
tory." He  had  been  appointed  to  this  extensive  oversight 
by  the  general  convention  of  1835,  as  stated  in  Chapter 
XIX.  Besides  taking  the  temporary  jurisdiction  of  Indiana 
and  Missouri,  (the  latter  of  which  has  now  its  own  prelate,*) 
Bishop  Kemper's  regular  field  of  operation  covers  several 
hundred  thousand  square  miles,  which  has  been  pretty  gen- 
erally visited  by  him,  and  many  parishes  planted.  I  waited 
over  the  next  Sunday  to  hear  this  episcopal  pioneer  of  the 
cross  preach  in  St.  Stephen's  church.  The  sermon  was 
practical  in  its  character,  delivered  with  considerable  ani- 
mation. His  language  is  full  and  flowing,  though  the 
effect  is  somewhat  marred  by  a  strained  unnatural  utter- 

*  Cicero  S.  Hawks  D.  D.  brother  of  Dr.  Hawks,  who  at  the  Convention  of 
1835  declined  the  episcopate  of  the  S.  W.  Territory. 


. 


ALL    SAINTS    CHURCH.  249 

ance,  in  the  more  rapid  periods.  The  style  and  matter  are 
those  of  a  man  whose  mind  is  well  disciplined  by  study  and 
observation,  and  his  feelings  absorbed  by  the  subjects  on 
which  he  treats. 

In  the  afternoon  I  heard  the  missionary  bishop  again 
at  Christchurch,  and  preached  myself  in  the  evening 
in  All  Saints  church ;  a  plain  unsightly  edifice  in  the 
south  division  of  the  city,  belonging  to  a  new  parish  to 
which  the  extension  of  the  city  in  that  direction  had  given 
birth. 


CHAPTER  XL. 

ANDALUSIA    MURDER. BRISTOL. 

The  journey  to  Niagara  was  commenced  on  Monday, 
when  the  mail  line,  which  takes  passengers  the  whole  dis- 
tance to  New  York,  was  preferred.  This  gave  us  an 
opportunity  of  seeing  several  towns  in  Pennsylvania  and 
New  Jersey  which  the  other  line  of  travel  leaves  out.  The 
first  we  passed  through  was  Frankfort,  in  the  same  county 
as  Philadelphia,  a  lively  country  place,  seated  in  the  midst 
of  a  cultivated  plain  watered  by  a  river  of  that  name. 

At  Andalusia  in  Bucks  county,  a  few  miles  beyond,  a 
dreadful  tragedy  had  been  lately  perpetrated,  in  the  mur- 
der of  a  schoolmaster  named  Chapman  by  a  man  whom 
his  wife  had  admitted  to  her  favours.  It  excited  additional 
sensation  by  the  adulteress's  own  participation  in  the  act. 
The  moral  sense  is  frequently  shocked  by  these  acts  in  the 
United  States  ;  and  latterly,  assassinations,  seductions,  in- 
cendiarisms, highway  and  house  robberies  have  increased 
at  a  fearful  ratio.  While  it  is  admitted  that  the  perpetra- 
tors of  these  crimes  are  as  frequently  foreigners  as  Ameri- 
cans— perhaps  more  frequently — still  it  is  no  less  one  of  the 
legitimate  fruits  of  the  voluntary  principle  in  religion,  and 
the  absence  of  a  paternal  system  of  religious  guardianship, 
by  which  the  great  mass  of  the  people  are  left  under  no 
religious  influence  except  that  which  the  methodist  minis- 
ters acquire  over  them,  which,  though  beneficial  as  far  as  it 
goes,  when  the  instruments  of  excitement  are  not  used  too 


ANDALUSIA    MURDER.  251 

freely,  is,  after  all,  a  poor,  insufficient  substitute  for  the 
high,  enlightened,  scriptural,  and  rational  scheme  of  popu- 
lar religious  instruction  and  superintendence,  created  by 
the  English  parochial  system. 

In  the  present  case,  however,  the  parties  rilled  a  respect- 
able rank  in  society  ;  and  if  one  cause  more  than  another 
gives  birth  to  the  laxity  of  morals,  which  is  asserted  from 
the  American  pulpit,  and  in  the  other  public  organs,  to  be 
spreading  amongst  this  class,  it  is,  unquestionably,  the  inun- 
dation of  light  French  literature  which  has  lately  flooded 
the  country,  and  which  is  greedily  devoured  by  almost 
every  class  of  readers.  To  suppose  that  the  youth  of  a 
country  will  have  the  opportunity  of  studying  the  scenes 
and  portraitures  with  which  these  works  abound,  without 
imbibing  something  of  the  same  spirit,  and  emulating  the 
models  so  attractively  presented,  is  to  suppose  human  na- 
ture different  in  America  from  what  we  find  it  in  every 
other  clime.  The  poison,  no  doubt,  is  working  rapidly  and 
virulently  through  the  whole  social  fabric  of  that  commu- 
nity, nor  are  persons  in  any  rank  exempt  from  its  influ- 
ence. The  evil  is  perpetrated,  and  made  more  extensive, 
by  the  extreme  cheapness  which  the  absence  of  an  interna- 
tional protective  law  enables  the  panderers  to  this  corrupt 
taste  to  furnish  the  reprints.  Any  of  De  Kock's,  Paul  Fe- 
val's,  "  George  Sand's,"  or  Victor  Hugo's  novels  can  be  pro- 
cured for  a  shilling,  which  is  doubtless  an  excellent  argu- 
ment against  the  foreign  copyright. 

Of  course,  I  do  not  exempt,  in  this  aggregate  of  influence, 
the  novels  of  Btilwer,  who  is  in  high  vogue  in  the  United 
States  ;  and  (startling  as  the  fact  may  be  to  English  read- 
ers) is  better  esteemed  as  an  author  than  Scott  or  Cooper ! 
The  farsical  character  of  his  scenes — as  sickly  as  they  are 
against  nature,  and  the  usages  of  society,  and  their  maud- 
lin sentimentalism  lessens  only  in  a  degree  the  effect  of 


252         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

that  "  liberalism"1  in  morals  as  well  as  religion  and  politics, 
of  which  he  is  the  apologist.  Bulwer  among  the  higher 
classes  is  a  fit  cotemporary  of  Reynolds  among  the  lower. 
Both  are  the  enemies  of  social  order,  and  the  unblushing 
advocates  of  vice. 

To  this  evil  may  be  added  that  unbridled  licentiousness 
of  the  American  press,  which  gives  publicity  to  cases  in 
the  criminal  courts  of  the  country,  and  in  the  private  walks 
of  life  which  no  English  paper  would  venture  to  print ; 
public  opinion  would  not  here  tolerate  such  exposures  in 
any  of  the  daily  journals  admitted  into  respectable  houses. 
This  remark  is  not  intended  to  apply  universally  in  the 
United  States.  A  large  proportion  of  the  daily  and  weekly 
newspapers,  and  other  periodicals,  are  free  from  the  offence 
of  catering  to  the  worst  and  lowest  passions  of  human  na- 
ture ;  but  from  the  absence  of  any  stamp  duty  on  newspa- 
pers, and  the  facilities  with  which  they  are  therefore  estab- 
lished by  persons  of  no  character  (or  capital  either),  the  evils 
of  a  licentious  and  infidel  press  are  incalculably  greater, 
and  more  wide  spread  in  that  country  than  in  Britain. 

I  am  sustained  in  my  view  of  this  subject  by  the  follow- 
ing article,  from  one  of  the  most  respectable  class  of  daily 
journals  published  in  Philadelphia,  which  city  it  may  be 
here  remarked,  ranks  deservedly  high  for  the  moral  tone  of 
its  newspaper  press,  though  the  scenes  lately  enacted  there 
show  that  its  influence  for  good  on  the  lower  orders  is  very 
partial : — 

"  It  is.  the  opinion  of  many  philanthropists  and  statisti- 
cians, who  have  closely  investigated  the  causes  and  the 
progress  of  crime,  that  publicity  of  the  revolting  or  remark- 
able murders,  etc.,  that  take  place,  may  be  assigned  as  one 
reason  for  their  increase.  This  would  seem  to  be  a  well- 
founded  opinion.  Individuals  who  have  noticed  with  care 
the  extraordinary  murders  which  have  been  committed  in 


NEWSPAPERS.  253 

this  country  within  a  year  or  two,  must  have  perceived  the 
striking  similarity  in  many  of  the  details.     Witness  for  ex- 
ample, the  case  of  Mr.  Adams,  of  New  York,  murdered  by 
Colt;  of  Mr.  Suydam,   in  New  Jersey,  and  also  the  recent 
murder  of  a  whole  family  in  Warren  county  in  the  same 
state.     In  New  England,  still  more  recently,  two  females 
residing  but  a  short  distance  from  each  other  were  robbed 
and  murdered  in  open  day,  the  guilty  in  each  case  adopt- 
ing pretty  nearly  the  same  means.     So  with  other  instances 
which  we  cannot  recal  to  memory.     On  looking  over  our 
files  for  a  recent  week,  we  find  twelve  murders  committed 
in  different  parts  of  the  country.     The  progress  of  crime, 
indeed,  seems  frightful !     Is  it  not  possible  to  discover  some 
remedy  ?     Is  not  the  subject  worthy  the  most  serious  atten- 
tion of  our  authorities  and  philanthropists  ? — Cannot  the 
press  assist  in  some  way,  in  checking  the  sanguinary  spirit 
which  seems  abroad  in  the  country  ?     Mr.  Farr,  an  English 
gentleman,  who  has  investigated   the  subject  of  suicides 
and  crimes  generally,  with  much  attention,  suggests  that 
some  plan  for  discontinuing  by  common  consent  the  detail- 
ed dramatic  tales  of  murder,  suicide  and  bloodshed  in  the 
newspapers,  is  well  worthy  the  attention  of  their  editors. 
He  says—"  No  fact  is  better  established  in  science  than 
that  suicide,   and  murder  may  perhaps  be  added,  is  often 
committed  from  imitation.     A  single  paragraph  may  sug- 
gest suicide  to  twenty  persons  ;  some  particular  chance,  but 
apt  expression,  seizes  the  imagination,  and  the  disposition 
to  repeat  the  act  in  a  moment  of  morbid  excitement  proves 
irresistible.     Do  the  advantages  of  publicity  counterbalance 
the  evil  attendant  on  one  such  death  ?     Why  should  cases 
of  suicide  be  recorded  in  the  public  papers  any  more  than 
cases  of  fever  ? 

"  Others,  however,  agree,  and  not  without  force,  that  the 
certainty  of  publicity  acts  powerfully  as  a  preventive.    This 


254  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

may  be  true  in  some  cases,  and  with  some  minds.  It  is 
equally  true,  however,  that  many  a  suicide  has  been  caused 
by  a  newspaper  paragraph,  or  the  apprehension  of  one. 
The  case  of  Lieut.  Wyche  may  be  cited  as  an  example. 
We  have  known  in  our  own  experience,  individuals  who 
have  been  rendered  perfectly  mad  for  the  time,  by  the  ap- 
pearance in  newspapers  of  erroneous  or  unfounded  charges. 
Under  such  circumstances,  the  penalty  of  publicity  is  indeed 
frightful,  while  the  party  being  innocent,  the  press  is  made  the 
instrument  of  perpetrating  an  enormous  outrage.  Constitu- 
ted as  society  is  at  present,  and  vitiated  as  the  public  taste  is, 
it  would  be  impossible  for  any  journal  aiming  to  be  a  news- 
paper, to  omit  all  notices  of  crime,  and  yet  receive  a  liberal 
degree  of  public  support.  Unfortunately,  many  of  those 
who  most  denounce  improper  newspaper  publications,  so- 
called,  are  among  the  most  eager  to  peruse  them.  It  rarely 
happens,  for  example,  that  a  journalist  is  commended,  ap- 
plauded or  patronised  for  omitting  the  details  of  an  exciting 
and  romantic,  and  yet  indelicate  story ;  while,  on  the  con- 
trary, those  who  give  all  the  particulars — who  spread  them 
out  to  the  greatest  length,  and  furnish  the  accounts  in  the 
most  vivid  terms,  are  the  most  sought  for.  While  we  admit 
the  impossibility  of  excluding  every  thing  that  relates  to 
crime,  we  think  that  something  in  the  way  of  reform  might 
be  accomplished.  Minute  details  might  be  avoided  by  the 
reputable  journals  of  the  day,  and  with  advantage.  But 
even  this  could  not  be  done  without  some  general  under- 
standing. If  it  be  true,  as  the  majority  of  reasoners  upon 
the  subject  argue,  that  the  publication  of  all  details  of  sui- 
cides, murders,  and  other  fearful  offences,  is  attended  with 
evil  to  the  public  morals,  the  practice  is  one  which  calls 
loudly  for  reform.  But  the  best  remedy  exists  with  the 
community.  If  our  citizens  eagerly  obtain  and  peruse 
journals  which  delight  in  spreading  these  details  before 


NEWSPAPERS.  255 

their  readers,  and  which  are  known  to  make  a  feature  of 
this  particular  kind  of  news,  they  should  hold  themselves 
responsible  for  the  offence  and  the  consequences,  at  least  to 
quite  as  great  an  extent  as  the  journalists."* 

It  is  indeed  a  lamentable  fact  that  the  most  exceptionable 
class  of  newspapers  in  America  have  by  far  the  largest  cir- 
culation, and  that  amongst  the  highest  class  of  readers  as 
well  as  the  lowest.  This  has  been  explained  as  owing 
to  the  superior  reccommendations  which  these  very  papers 
possess  in  all  that  constitutes  the  most  important  features 
of  a  daily  paper — viz.,  copiousness,  and  newness  of  publish- 
ed reports  relative  to  mercantile  and  political  doings,  market 
prices,  variations  in  the  public  funds,  shipping  and  foreign 
news,  etc.,  etc.  The  latest  and  most  accurate  intelligence 
on  these  points  forms,  unquestionably,  the  principal,  and 
with  many  readers,  the  sole  recommendation  of  a  newspa- 
per ;  but  is  it  indeed  the  case,  that  the  oldest  and  most  re- 
spectable establishments  in  America  suffer  themselves  to  be 
excelled  in  these  most  important  requisites  of  a  periodical 
press  by  rival  penny  sheets,  started  sometimes  by  adven- 
turous and  needy  foreigners!  whose  only  object  is  gain,  and 
with  whom  the  moral  feelings  of  the  community  is  the 
last  consideration  that  influences  them  in  catering  for  the 
public  appetite  ?  If  such  is  the  apathy  or  the  want  of  in- 
dustrious enterprize  which  the  proprietors  of  American 
newspapers  of  the  more  reputable  class  evince,  their  cases 
afford  a  startling  contradiction  of  that  spirit  of  emulation 
which  it  is  their  perpetual  boast  belongs  to  all  classes  in 
that  country ;  and  a  heavy  responsibility  rests  on  them  for 

*  The  Enquirer,  and  National  Gazette,  Nov.  21,  1834. 

t  The  "New  York  Herald,"  the  best  newspaper  in  America  for  all  the  pur- 
poses of  a  commercial  newspaper,  is  the  property  of  an  unnaturalized  Scotch- 
man, who  was  first  an  operative  in  "  The  Courier  "  office  in  that  city.  He  com- 
menced his  sheet  as  a  penny  hebdomadal  of  the  humblest  class. 


256  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

the  vast  and  daily  accumulating  spread  of  atheistical  and 
disorganizing  principles,  produced  by  the  circulation  of  the 
smaller  class  of  irresponsible  vehicles  of  news.  There  is  of 
private  domestic  scandal — nothing  at  which  humanity  shud- 
ders— nothing  too  polluting,  too  incendiary,  or  too  injurious 
to  youthful  morals,  excluded  from  the  columns  of  these 
prints,  if  it  only  comes  under  the  department  of  "  news." 

But  a  truce  to  these  reflections,  for  Bristol  appears  in 
sight.  Few  places  are  so  beautifully  situated,  and  sur- 
rounded by  so  many  charming  scenes  as  this  thriving  town. 
It  stands  on  the  bank  of  the  river,  commanding  an  extensive 
prospect  of  the  swelling  stream  and  its  verdant  sides,  with 
Burlington  on  the  opposite  shore.  St.  James's  church,  be- 
longs to  a  parish  of  early  foundation,  at  present  under  the 
pastoral  care  of  Mr.  Perkins.  The  "  episcopalians"  here  are 
a  numerous  and  influential  body.  I  made  several  subse- 
quent visits  to  Bristol;  and  shortly  before  leaving  the 
country  formed  a  very  agreeable  acquaintance  with  a  cler- 
gyman named  Johnson  of  this  place,  now  settled  in  Mary- 
land. 

At  the  sudden  bend  of  the  river,  nine  or  ten  miles  beyond 
Bristol,  we  crossed  the  broad  Delaware  by  a  substantial 
bridge  of  five  arches,  resting  on  stone  piers  and  abutments  ; 
which  brings  us  into  New  Jersey,  some  of  whose  character- 
istics and  principal  localities  I  shall  describe  in  a  future 
chapter. 


CHAPTER  XLI. 


THE    HUDSON. 


'Tis  night — a  calm,  clear,  silvery  night, 
And  hill  and  vale,  and  wooded  height, 

Beneath  the  moonbeams  sleep, 
And  silence  in  the  haunts  of  men, 
In  village  gay,  and  lovely  glen, 

Doth  peaceful  vigils  keep! 
All  quietly  we  swiftly  glide 
Above  thy  gentle  murmuring  tide. 

Oh  !  bright  and  beauteous  stream! 
Yet  still  I  stand  with  swelling  breast, 
And  eyes  that  cannot  close  in  rest, 
And  gaze  where  dimly  in  the  west, 

Catskill,  thy  mountains,  gleam! 

It  seems  a  dream — a  vision  fair, 

That  I  have  breathed  thy  pure  free  air, 

And  scaled  thy  lofty  brow, 
The  snowy  clouds  beneath  my  feet, 
Thrown  as  a  veil,  a  radiant  sheet, 

O'er  all  the  world  below  ; 
Or,  floating  by,  like  thrones  of  light, 
Revealing  to  my  raptured  sight, 

Scenes  such  as  fancy  loves ; 
While  from  that  distant,  lower  sphere, 
Rose  up,  in  notes  so  soft  and  clear, 
An  angel  might  have  paused  to  hear, 

The  music  of  the  groves. 


ANON. 


At  New  York  we  took  the  steamboat  North  America 
for  the  village  of  Catskill,  where  we  had  resolved  on  stop- 
ping on  our  way.  The  palisadoes  on  the  left  of  the  Hud- 
son, or  North  river,  are  one  of  the  first,  and  among  the 
most  striking  objects  presented  to  the  traveller's  eye. 
They  commence  at  Hoboken  and  continue  for  about 
twenty  miles,  like  a  high  wall  of  unequal  height  and  bro- 
ken summit.      Well  may  the  American  be  proud  of   his 

17 


258  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

rivers  and  mountains  on  moving  up  this  noble  river.  The 
views  are  ever  changing,  and  always  grand  and  striking. 
Fort  Independence,  Tarrytown,  Sing  Sing,  Dunderburgh 
Mountain,  and  Peekskill,  are  passed  in  succession,  and 
the  famed  Highlands  now  brings  every  one  on  the  high- 
est deck  to  gaze  and  admire  scenery  which  surely  the 
world  cannot  surpass.  St.  Anthony's  Nose,  West  Point, 
Fort  Putnam,  Newburgh,  Hamburgh,  Poughkeepsie,  and 
Hyde  Park,  familiar  by  description  to  the  reader,  are  left 
behind,  and  the  Catskill  mountains  are  now  seen  lifting 
their  giant  heads  to,  and  above  the  clouds,  making  the 
pulse  beat  quick  in  anticipation  of  the  long-cherished  grati- 
fication of  reaching  that  glorious  summit,  and  communica- 
ting some  of  the  inspiration  which  has  given  fire  to  the  pen 
of  poet  and  legendist,  whose  glowing  descriptions  invest  its 
brow,  and  the  surrounding  scenes,  with  a  romance  almost 
supernatural. 

Hiring  an  open  carriage  and  "pair  in  the  pleasant  village 
of  Catskill,  every  house  and  building  of  which  seemed  to 
speak  of  Rip  Van  Winkle  and  his  rusty  firelock,  we  were 
soon  on  our  way  to  the  base  of  the  mountain,  or  rather  the 
heap  of  mountains,  piled  one  above  the  other,  their  topmost 
apex  being  lost  ever  and  anon  in  the  mist.  At  a  turn  on 
the  winding  road  which  brings  you  about  half  way  up, 
stands  a  humble  shed,  whose  sign  informs  the  by  passer 
that  he  has  reached  the  veritable  spot  where  Rip  Van 
Winkle  took  his  long  nap.  Who  does  not  like  to  favour 
these  "  cheats  on  travellers,"  and  to  dwell  with  credulous 
complacency  in  the  full  persuasion  that  just  there — on 
that  very  resting  place — shaded  by  those  spreading  beech 
trees,  inviting  to  repose,  slept  Rip  Van  Winkle  after  taking 
that  powerful  potion. 

A  few  more  turns  in  the  winding  road,  and  the  toilsome 
ascent  is  finished,  after  a  ride  of  twelve  miles.     From  the 


KAUTERSKILL    FALLS.  259 

summit  of  the  Mountain  House,  what  a  view  is  spread  out 
before  the  eye  !  The  succession  of  cities,  towns,  villages, 
hamlets,  farms,  and  fields,  with  the  silver  stream  of  the 
Hudson  and  her  tributary  branches  seem  endless.  Distant 
mountains  appear  as  mere  inequalities  of  the  surface  ;  and 
the  numberless  vessels  on  the  river's  expansive  bosom  look 
like  insects  playing  and  moving  about  on  the  surface  of  the 
water. 

We  passed  the  whole  of  the  evening,  till  these  objects 
were  all  shut  out  by  its  gathering  shadows,  on  the  spacious 
piazza  in  front  of  the  house  of  entertainment.  In  the 
morning  the  eyes  were  feasted  with  renewed,  and  increased 
gratification,  and  the  telescope  used  repeatedly  to  bring  the 
different  localities  pointed  out  by  our  host,  nearer  to  our 
view.  At  eleven  we  went  in  our  hired  vehicle  to  the  ro- 
mantic Kauterskill  falls,  where  two  beautiful  lakes  dis- 
charge their  superabundant  waters  over  a  precipice  of  210 
feet ;  the  water  being  broke  onethird  of  the  distance 
makes  two  falls  ;  its  further  course  is  concealed  among  the 
woods  of  the  ravine  below. 

More  dream-like  still,  that  wild,  lone  spot, 
That  ne'er  in  life  can  be  forgot, 

Where  falls  thy  mountain  stream, — 
Where,  varying,  beautiful  and  bright, 
All  radiant  with  graceful  life, 

Thy  foaming  waters  gleam, 
That,  to  the  charmed,  and  wondering  eye, 
Seem  gushing  from  the  very  sky, 

To  their  deep  bed  below, 
While  through  the  silent,  listening  wood, 
That  from  creation's  morn  hath  stood, 
And  hath  all  change  and  time  withstood, 

Thy  peaceful  murmurs  flow. 

What  rapture  did  our  bosoms  thrill, 
As  trembling,  breathless,  pale  and  still, 
We  stood  in  that  lone  glen ! 


260  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

The  spirit  longed  to  burst  its  chain, 
To  seek  its  native  skies  again 

Nor  mingle  more  with  men ! 
From  earthly  stain  and  bondage  free, 
To  follow  its  high  destiny, 

To  bathe  in  heaven's  pure  light, 
To  learn  from  seraph's  burning  tongue, 
More  of  His  skill,  whose  praise  is  sung, 
By  nature's  harp  to  music  strung 

By  every  fountain  bright. 

After  dinner  at  the  Mountain  House,  and  again  dwelling 
for  an  hour  on  the  unequalled  prospect,  we  got  into  our 
carriage,  and  reached  the  landing  place  at  the  village  just 
in  time  for  the  steamboat  from  New  York,  in  which  we 
pursued  our  way  up  the  river,  forty-three  miles,  which 
brought  us  to  Albany. 

Thy  peaks  are  fading  from  my  view, 
A  lingering  look — a  last  adieu ! 

Ye  mountain  heights  farewell ! 
May  we,  who  gazed  with  kindling  eyes, 
With  burning  thoughts,  in  mute  surprise, 

On  vale,  and  stream  and  dell, 
In  that  fair  land  by  angels  trod, 
On  Zion's  hill  the  mount  of  God, 

Once  more  in  rapture  stand  ! 
Though  never  more  our  paths  may  meet, 
May  we  again  hold  converse  sweet, 
And  feel  our  hearts  in  oneness  beat, 

In  that  far,  "  Better  Land !" 

During  the  passage  we  passed  several  towns  and  vil- 
lages, among  them  Kinderhook,  the  country  residence  of 
the  then  President.  It  is  a  small  Dutch  built  village  ;  the 
house,  from  what  we  could  see  of  it,  much  of  the  same 
character.  Mr.  Van  Buren  was  at  this  time  becoming 
daily  more  unpopular,  as  the  embarrassments  of  the  coun- 
try, the  result,  as  it  was  said,  of  his  predecessor's  policy 
(in  which  he  had  co-operated)  increased.     Numbers  were 


KINDERHOOK.  261 

breaking  from  the  ranks  of  "  democracy,"  and  attaching 
themselves  to  the  "  whig"  party  ;  and  as  the  presidential 
term  of  office  was  nearly  expired,  political  feeling  was  now 
reaching  its  highest  point.  The  occasion  of  approaching 
Kinderhook,  often  celebrated  in  election  songs,  and  the  po- 
litical caricatures,  seemed  to  stir  up  all  the  party  feeling  of 
the  passengers,  with  whom  the  epithets  of  "  King  Martin," 
"  the  little  magician,"  with  their  associates  of  "  kitchen  ca- 
binet," "  cabbage  garden,"  "  gold  spoons,"  "  paper  and 
twine,"  and  other  expressions  familiar  to  every  one  at  this 
time,  through  the  speeches  of  politicians,  and  the  rhymes 
and  pictures  of  caricaturists,  were  liberally  used.  As  the 
boat  rounded  the  pier  to  leave  some  passengers,  several 
voices  struck  up  the  following  song  to  the  tune  of  "Yankee 
Doodle." 

For  Harrison  and  liberty 

Let  every  freeman  shout,  sirs ! 
Let's  meet  Van  Buren  at  the  polls, 
And  turn  the  despot  out,  sirs; 
For  Harrison  then  keep  it  up, 
For  Harrison  and  law,  sirs : 
Too  long  we  have  to  despots  bowed, 
Now  freedom's  sword  we  draw,  sirs. 

When  war's  destructive  blast  came  on, 

Oh,  where  was  Harrison,  sirs ! 
His  country's  annals  well  can  show 

How  he  the  battles  won,  sirs. 

For  Harrison,  &c. 
No  more  we'll  trust  to  cabbage  heads, 

Or  Kinderhook  physicians ; 
No  more  we'll  bow  to  cabinets 

Of  fox-like  sly  magicians. 

For  Harrison,  &c. 
We  call  the  Hero  from  the  plough, 

In  freedom's  cause  to  cheer  us  ; 
The  kitchen  cabinet  must  go, 

And  Van  himself  must  fear  us. 

For  Harrison.  &c. 


262  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

We  strike  in  freedom's  holy  cause, 

'Gainst  those  who  would  enslave  us ; 
And  lo !  our  Cincinnatus  comes, 

From  Goth  and  Van  to  save  us. 

For  Harrison,  &c. 

The  "  Cincinnatus"  of  this  popular  doggerel  was  General 
Harrison,  the  "  whig"  candidate  for  the  Presidency,  whose 
untimely  death  a  few  weeks  after  his  inauguration  spread 
a  universal  gloom  over  the  country,  and  appeared  at  the 
time,  as  far  as  poor  human  foresight  can  understand  events, 
the  most  disastrous  one  that  had  ever  befallen  the  United 
States.  A  venerable  hero,  and  an  uncorrupted  politician, 
the  federalists  of  the  nation  turned  their  eyes  on  him,  as 
what  was  supposed  to  be  the  effect  of  Jackson's  policy  be- 
gan to  work  its  wide-spread  mischief.  Harrison  was  called 
literally  from  his  plough,  and  the  quiet  avocations  of  his 
farm  on  the  river  Ohio,  to  fill  the  executive  chair  ;  when 
summoning  to  his  Cabinet  the  most  talented  men  of  his 
party,  he  set  himself  to  correct  what  he  regarded  as  the  evil 
of  his  predecessor's  acts.  Before,  however,  any  one  import- 
ant measure  could  be  consummated,  he  was  called  away 
to  another  world.  America  mourned  one  of  her  truest  pa- 
triots, and  the  Church  of  America,  at  the  same  time, 
lost  one  of  her  most  devout  and  most  attached  laymen. 
The  new  President  had  been  for  many  years  an  active 
member  of  the  "  episcopal"  church  in  Ohio  ;  had  sat  in  her 
ecclesiastical  councils ;  and,  in  his  own  parish,  had  regu- 
larly discharged  the  duties  of  a  vestryman.  Like  the  first 
American  President,  to  whom  his  political  admirers  love  to 
compare  him,  "  he  was  gathered  to  his  fathers,  having  the 
testimony  of  a  good  conscience,  in  the  communion  of  the 
Catholic  Church,  in  the  confidence  of  a  certain  faith,  in  the 
comfort  of  a  reasonable,  religious  and  holy  hope,  in  favour 
with  God,  and  in  perfect  charity  with  the  world."* 
*  Visitation  Office. 


MR.    TYLER. 


263 


The   constitution  of  the  United  States,  which  in  such 
cases  makes  the  Vice  President  the  successor  in  the  execu- 
tive chair,  gave  the  reins  of  power  to  a  man  of  very  inferior 
parts,  who  had  been  proposed  to  his  first  post  by  the  Con- 
vention which  nominated  Harrison  in  order  to  conciliate 
certain  states,  whose  local  prejudices  it  was  apprehended 
would  be  in  some  measure  awakened  by  the  nomination  of 
a  western  man  for  President ;  the  force  of  accidental  cir- 
cumstances had  thrust  him  into  public  life,  in  which  he  had 
played  a  very  secondary  part.     His  very  want  of  abilities 
was  his  recommendation  ;  as  the  contingency  of  General 
Harrison's  death  made  it  important  to  provide  against  any 
interruption  in  the  schemes  which  were  to  be  carried  out 
during  his  administration,  and  Tyler,  the  new  Vice  Presi- 
dent, was  loud  in  his  professions  of  whig  principles.     The 
"  whig"  party  greatly  erred  in  this  step  !*     Whether   the 
country  at  large  was  the  gainer  or  not,  has  yet  to  be  proved. 
The  new  President  had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  some  wily 
politicians  belonging  to  the  opposition,  and,  without  even 
consulting  with  his  cabinet,  vetoed  every  important  measure 
which  his  party  carried  through  Congress.     His  ministers 
perceived  too  late  that  they  were  not  wanted,  and  retired 
from  their  posts.     One  only,  Mr.  Daniel  Webster,  remained, 
at  the  earnest  solicitation  of  his  friends  ;  by  which,  it  must 
be  granted,  in  his  admirable  diplomatic  policy  in  conducting 

*  It  must,  however,  be  admitted,  that  the  country  has  greatly  improved  in  sub- 
stantial prosperity  since  the  termination  of  the  national  bank  charter,  and  that 
the  first  shock  produced  by  that  act  in  the  disturbance  of  the  monetary  system 
having  past,  every  department  of  commercial  and  financial  operation  has  ac- 
quired greater  stability  and  firmness.  Capital  is  more  equally  divided;  ex- 
changes are  low  and  uniform ;  manufactured  goods  are  cheap ;  labour  is  suffi- 
ciently remunerated;  and  the  ruinous  system  of  speculation,  which  was  doubt- 
less a  leading  cause  of  the  disastrous  re-action  in  1834-5-6-7,  is  effectually  checked. 
Another  change  in  the  monetary  system  of  the  country  would,  therefore,  be  a 
misfortune. 


264  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

the  Northeastern  boundary  treaty,  the  country  was  saved 
from  serious  difficulties  with  Great  Britain,  and  other  catas- 
trophes averted.  Jackson's  and  Van  Buren's  policy  was 
continued  by  Tyler,  whose  successor,  the  present  President, 
follows  out  the  same  line  with  a  bolder  and  more  states- 
man-like purpose.  Whether  for  good  or  for  evil,  Jefferso- 
nian  "  democracy"  has  certainly  long  obtained  the  upper  hand 
in  the  United  States,  and  the  opposition  party  is  hopelessly 
excluded  from  any  prospect  of  recovering  the  reins  of  gov- 
ernment. 

The  reader  must  pardon  this  digression  from  the  simple 
narrative  of  a  passage  up  the  Hudson  river,  and  a  view  of 
its  picturesque  beauties.  If  such  a  theme  as  American 
politics  disturbs  or  dissipates  his  contemplation  of  the  glo- 
rious scenes  with  which  it  abounds,  though  beheld  through 
the  faint  medium  of  a  partial  description,  let  the  owner  of 
Kinderhook  receive  the  blame,  and  the  reader  may  find  all 
the  sympathy  he  wants  from  another  song,  in  which  the 
male,  and  a  few  of  the  female  voices,  are  now  swelling  a 
new  chorus  as  the  boat  makes  its  onward  way  : — 

Of  the  little  Magician  we're  tired, 

And  of  the  Sub-treasury  too ; 
We'll  scout  him,  the  people  are  fired 

With  love  for  Old  Tippecanoe. 

When  Martin  was  housed  like  a  chattel, 

Opposed  to  the  war  as  you  know, 
Our  hero  was  foremost  in  battle, 

And  conquered  at  Tippecanoe. 

The  fame  of  our  hero  grows  wider, 

And  spreads  the  whole  continent  through ; 

Then  fill  up  a  mug  of  hard  cider, 
And  drink  to  Old  Tippecanoe. 

We  hear  many  thousand  good  farmers, 
United  together  so  true, 


song.  265 


Shout  loudly,  "  Van  Buren  will  harm  us, 
We'll  vote  for  Old  Tippecanoe." 

To  bring  down  the  price  of  our  labour, 

Van  Buren  is  striving  to  do  ; 
Then  come  every  man  with  his  neighbour, 
And  vote  for  Old  Tippecanoe. 

The  kitchen  of  filth  must  be  cleansed 

And  every  thing  fitted  anew  ; 
And  all  the  materials  amended, 

Directed  by  Tippecanoe. 

And  now  in  the  month  of  November, 

The  people  together  will  go, 
To  turn  out  the  great  money  spender, 

And  put  in  Old  Tippecanoe. 

The  people  with  plenty  will  prosper, 
And  homewards  Van  Buren  will  go, 

True  principles  then  we  will  foster, 
Through  President  Tippecanoe. 


CHAPTER  XLII. 


NIAGARA. 


The  city  of  Albany  is  240  miles  from  Philadelphia  ;  a 
railroad  unites  it  to  Buffalo,  the  great  emporium  of  the 
lakes,  342  miles  from  Albany  where  steamboats  constantly 
leave  for  Chicago  in  Illinois  ;  thus  transporting  travellers  to 
the  west  from  New  York  1490  miles  of  the  way  by  steam. 

From  Albany,  a  place  of  about  the  same  date  as  New 
York,  and  now  the  capital  of  the  state,  we  took  the  rail- 
road to  Syracuse,  which  we  reached  about  noon  the  next 
day  ;  the  rest  of  the  distance  to  Buffalo  was  accomplished 
by  stage,  one  night  being  passed  at  Canandaigua,  the  shire 
town  of  Ontario  county,  seated  at  the  head  of  a  lake  bear- 
ing its  name.  The  day  after  leaving  Utica,  which  we 
reached  on  the  first  morning  of  our  journey  from  Albany, 
gave  us  an  opportunity  of  enjoying  a  succession  of  views 
of  rare  beauty,  as  we  journeyed  through  a  country  which 
has  well  been  pronounced  by  various  travellers  unequalled 
for  fertility  in  the  United  States. 

We  reached  Buffalo  late  Saturday  evening,  and  found 
excellent  accommodation  at  the  American  Hotel,  a  house 
of  large  dimensions,  and  possessing  every  comfort  belonging 
to  the  most  luxurious  establishment  of  the  kind.  The 
view  of  Buffalo  the  next  morning  greatly  exceeded  my  ex- 
pectations. Knowing  that  it  had  been  burnt  down  by  the 
British  in  1813,  I  certainly  was  not  prepared  to  see  a  city, 
handsomely  and  tastefully  built,  with  public  squares  and 


NIAGARA.  267 

buildings  all  wearing  a  more  European  look  than  half  the 
towns  on  the  Atlantic  coast ;  much  more  so  than  Phila- 
delphia. Yet  such  is  Buffalo,  its  population  only  two  hun- 
dred in  number  in  1S20,  is  now  two  thousand  eight  hundred  ! 

In  the  morning  I  found  my  way  to  Trinity  Church,  a 
fine  Gothic  structure,  where  I  had  the  pleasure  of  hearing 
Dr.  Shelton,  its  worthy  rector.  The  galleries  were  half 
filled  with  soldiers,  part  of  a  regiment  then  quartered  in 
the  city. 

The  next  morning  we  left  in  a  steamboat  for  the  falls, 
twenty-two  miles  distant.  I  cannot  describe  my  feelings 
when,  about  noon,  the  column  of  spray  appeared  in  the 
distance,  and  the  sound  of  the  mighty  cataract  first  became 
distinctly  audible.  They  were,  in  truth,  overwhelming  ! 
Landing  within  a  few  miles  of  the  spot,  we  soon  reached 
the  hotel,  when,  after  a  hurried  repast,  we  hastened  to  Goat 
Island,  and  received  our  first  impressions. 

Goat  Island  divides  the  cataract ;  the  fall  on  the  left  look- 
ing down  the  river,  being  about  twice  the  width  of  that  on 
the  right,  which  is  again  broken  by  a  rocky  projection. 
The  whole  fall  made  by  these  three  streams  does  not  roll 
over  a  ledge  running  at  right  angles  from  its  course  as 
many  suppose,  but  extends  diagonally  from  one  to  another, 
which  makes  the  American  four  hundred  yards  lower 
down  the  river  then  the  Canada  or  Horse  Shoe  Fall,  so 
called  from  the  shape  of  the  projecting  ledge  over  which  it 
tumbles.  This  feature  in  Niagara  Falls  gives  great  variety 
to  the  views  of  it,  and  takes  nothing  from  its  grandeur,  as 
from  various  points  the  whole  descent  of  water  is  seen  at  once. 

The  evening  was  spent  on  the  American  side  ;  afterwards 
we  took  the  ferry  to  the  Canada  side  to  change  the  scene. 
On  the  deep  stream  where  the  boat  crosses,  the  objects 
around  and  above  us  were  grand  in  the  extreme.  The  cat- 
aract spanned  by  its  perpetual  bow,  and  the  deep,  steady, 


268        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

constant  roll  of  the  measureless  volume  of  water  enchained 
us  in  speechless  admiration  and  wonder. 

"  The  imagination  baffled,  strives  in  vain  ! 
The  wildest  streams  that  ever  poets  feign 
Thou  dost  transcend  !    There  is  no  power  in  song 
To  paint  the  wonders  that  around  me  throng." 

On  the  Canada  side  we  descended  the  winding  staircase 
leading  to  a  projecting  rock  which  extends  nearly  half  way 
under  the  Horse  Shoe  Fall,  having  previously  made  the 
necessary  change  in  our  dress  in  the  frame  building  at  the 
summit ;  and,  accompanied  by  a  trusty  guide,  we  ventured 
under  the  foaming  cataract,  amidst  a  constant  descent  of 
spray  which  several  times  took  my  little  companion  off  her 
feet,  and  threatened  us  both  with  being  carried  away  with 
its  force.  The  office-keeper  had  informed  us  that  the  river 
was  unusually  swollen,  and  had  suggested  that  "  the  lady 
had  better  not  venture,"  but  "  the  lady,"  was  not  one  to  turn 
back  in  the  pursuit  of  such  a  novel  adventure,  and  was  too 
intense  a  lover  of  natural  beauties  to  be  deterred  from  enjoy- 
ing a  scene  so  awfully  grand.  The  following  official  cer- 
tificate possesses,  I  suppose,  the  same  relative  value  as  a 
college  diploma,  with  perhaps  greater  veracity  : — 


NIAGARA    FALLS,    U.  C. 

THIS    IS    TO    CERTIFY    THAT 

THE   REV.   EDWARD   WAYLEN 

HAS  PASSED  BEHIND  THE  GREAT 

FALLING    SHEET    OF    WATER, 

TO    TERMINATION    ROCK  ; 

BEING  230  FEET  BEHIND  THE  GREAT  HORSE-SHOE  FALL. 

Given  under  my  hand,  at  the  office  of  the 
General  Register  of  the  names  of  visitors  at  the 
Table  Rock,  this  3rd  day  of  June,  1840. 

Isaiah  Starkey. 


NIAGARA.  269 

After  dwelling  amid  these  scenes  of  wonder  for  several 
days,  and  once  more  crossing  to  the  Canada  side,  we  reluct- 
antly left  them  for  Lewistown,  seven  miles  lower  down  the 
river,  where  we  took  an  English  steamboat  called  "  The 
Great  Britain"  for  Oswego  on  the  southeast  shore  of  Lake 
Ontario,  a  further  distance  of  150  miles.  Opposite  to  Lew- 
istown is  the  town  of  Queenstown,  the  scene  of  a  memora- 
ble engagement  during  the  last  war,  and  above  it,  on  the 
hill  summit,  stands  a  fine  monument,  erected  to  the  memo- 
ry of  the  British  General  (Brock)  who  fell  in  that  strife. 

Our  course  now  lies  for  the  lake,  reached  by  the  deep 
stream  formed  by  that  mighty  avalanche  of  waters  on 
which  we  have  lately  gazed.  In  an  hour  or  two,  the  dis- 
tant expanse  of  an  inland  sea  is  visible — and  now  we  are 
borne  on  its  bosom,  the  setting  sun  declining  amidst  a  halo 
of  glory — 

"  Curtain'd  with  cloudy  red, 
Pillows  his  chin  upon  an  orient  wave." 

I  certainly  remember  nothing  so  beauteous  as  the  scenes 
which  that  lake  journey  presented — calm,  quiet,  lovely  and 
delicious,  I  wished  it  could  last  for  ever,  or  that  every  even- 
ing would  be  as  pleasant,  and  the  evening  of  life  as  serene 
and  peaceful.  The  moon  arose  in  her  splendour  as  the 
western  horizon  grew  dim,  and  we  lingered  on  deck  till 
the  midnight  clock  reminded  us  that  our  place  of  destina- 
tion would  be  reached  by  early  morn,  when  a  day's  travel 
was  before  us. 

At  Oswego  we  took  the  canal  boat,  which  follows  the 
windings  of  the  Oswego  River  to  Syracuse,  thirty-eight 
miles  distant,  from  whence  Philadelphia  was  reached  by 
the  same  route  as  before.  At  New  York  Miss  Waylen  left 
in  a  London  packet  for  home. 

Before  proceeding  to  York  I  received  a  request  to  officiate 


270  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

at  West  Chester  on  the  Sunday  that  its  rector,  Mr.  Richard 
Newton,  supplied  the  then  vacant  church  of  St.  Paul  in 
Philadelphia  (and  which  resulted  in  his  being  invited  to 
assume  the  rectorship  of  the  same).  I  record  this  incident 
to  express  the  pleasure  which  my  visit  to  one  of  the  pret- 
tiest spots  in  Pennsylvania,  and  the  acquaintance  there 
formed  (though  unrenewed)  with  the  family  of  Mr.  New- 
ton, and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Rees  of  the  same  place  afforded  me. 
The  latter  was  at  this  time  principal  of  a  classical  academy 
in  the  town,  to  which  he  now  adds  the  charge  of  St.  Paul's 
parish  at  West  Whiteland.  The  church  at  West  Chester, 
built  in  the  Gothic  order,  with  a  graceful  spire,  is  a  good 
specimen  of  the  taste  and  enterprize  of  the  parishioners. 
The  east  window  is  of  stained  glass.  Besides  Mr.  Rees's 
Academy,  there  is  a  fine  seminary  belonging  to  the  Roman- 
ists adjoining  the  town,  the  students  of  which,  to  my  sur- 
prise, attended  church  in  the  afternoon  accompanied  by  one 
of  the  tutors. 

This  town  lies  nine  miles  out  of  the  railroad  line  from 
Philadelphia  to  York.  I  reached  the  inn  whence  the  road 
diverges  from  the  latter  a  little  before  the  cars  passed,  and 
got  to  my  parish  in  the  evening,  having  travelled  in  my 
Niagara  trip  alone  1377  miles. 


CHAPTER  XLIII. 


A    WEEK    IN    NEW    JERSEY. 

MilJ  were  his  doctrines,  and  not  one  discourse 
But  gained  in  softness  what  it  lost  in  force : 
Kind  his  opinions ; — he  would  not  receive 
An  ill  report,  nor  evil  act  believe ; 
"  If  true,  'twas  wrong ;  but  blemish  great  or  small 
"Have  all  mankind;  yea,  sinners  are  we  all." 

If  ever  fretful  thought  disturb'd  his  breast — 
If  aught  of  gloom  that  cheerful  mind  oppress'd — ■ 
It  sprang  from  innovation :  it  was  then 
He  spoke  of  mischief  made  by  restless  men ; 
Not  by  new  doctrines :  never  in  his  life 
Would  he  attend  to  controversial  strife, 
For  sects  he  cared  not — "  They  are  not  of  us 
"  Nor  need  we,  brethren,  their  concerns  discuss; 
"  But  'tis  the  change — the  schism  at  home  I  feel ; 
"Ills  few  perceive,  and  none  have  skill  to  heal : 
"  Not  at  the  altar  our  young  brethren  read 
"  (Facing  their  flock)  the  Decalogue  and  Creed ; 
"  But  to  their  duty  in  their  desks  they  stand 
"  With  naked  surplice,  lacking  hood  and  band: 
"  Churches  are  now  of  holy  song  bereft, 
"  And  half  our  ancient  customs  changed  or  left; 
"  Mistaken  choirs  refuse  the  solemn  strain 
"Of  ancient  Gregory,  which  from  our's  amain 
"  Comes  flying  forth  from  aisle  to  aisle  about 
"  Sweet  links  of  harmony,  and  long  drawn  out." 

Crabbe. 

I  continued  at  York  till  late  in  September  of  the  same 
year,  when  the  increasing  feebleness  of  aged  parents,  and 
other  family  considerations  created  a  strong  desire  to  make 
a  visit  to  England,  for  which  I  obtained  the  permission  of 
my  vestry,  who  gave  me,  with  the  bishop's  consent,  a  six 
month's  furlough,  accompanied  with  "  Resolutions"  expres- 
sive of  their  good  feeling. 

On  the   Friday  before  my  departure,  the  Rev.  Robert 


272  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

Davies,  rector  of  Belleville  in  New  Jersey,  arrived  on  a 
long  promised  visit,  and  preached  in  St.  John's  the  Sunday 
following.  On  Monday  (St.  Matthew's  Day)  I  took  leave 
of  my  people  in  a  farewell  sermon ;  amongst  those  present 
besides  my  own  congregation  were  all  the  protestant  minis- 
ters of  the  town,  and  as  many  of  their  several  congrega- 
tions as  the  building  would  accommodate. 

On  Tuesday,  September  22nd,  I  bade  adieu  for  a  time  to 
York,  and,  accompanied  by  my  friend  Davies,  reached 
Philadelphia  in  the  evening,  where  on  the  next  morning 
we  became  guests  of  Mr.  Neilson,  a  hospitable  and  public- 
spirited  citizen.  His  house,  table,  and  whole  domestic  ar- 
rangements are  a  fair  model  of  the  English  gentleman  or 
peer.  There  was  present  on  this  occasion,  besides  Mrs. 
Neilson  and  several  ladies,  a  brother  of  our  host,  who 
holds  an  official  post  near  the  person  of  the  Governor-Gen- 
eral of  Canada. 

Thursday  morning,  we  took  the  steamboat  to  Burling- 
ton, when  I  first  became  acquainted  with  Bishop  Doane, 
who  was  one  of  the  passengers  ;  he  invited  my  companion 
and  myself  to  the  episcopal  residence  at  Riverside,  which 
we  reached  a  little  after  noon.  We  met  at  the  dinner-table 
Dr.  Dorr,  the  rector  of  Christchurch,  Philadelphia,  an  inti- 
mate acquaintance  and  frequent  visitor  of  the  bishop's,  and 
two  of  his  own  clergy.  The  occasion  was  a  highly  agree- 
able one,  enhanced  by  the  presence  of  Mrs.  Doane,  whose 
manners,  highly  polished  and  full  of  kindness,  render  her  a 
fit  mistress  of  a  bishop's  house.  The  conversation  related 
chiefly  to  England,  in  which  all  present  showed  themselves 
well  conversant  with  the  current  literature  of  our  country. 

Having  engaged  to  be  at  Hoboken,  seventy  miles  distant, 
the  following  morning,  we  left  Riverside  in  the  afternoon 
for  Trenton  the  capital  of  the  state.  The  state  house  and 
governor's  residence,  city  hall,  and  churches  of  this  pleasant 


HOBOKEN.  273 

city  are  all  substantial  buildings,  which  a  subsequent  visit 
enabled  me  to  inspect.  Trenton,  it  will  be  remembered,  is 
classical  ground  to  the  Americans.  Here  General  Washing- 
ton in  the  campaign  of  1776,  with  his  army  of  five  thou- 
sand men,  crossed  the  Delaware  at  the  dead  of  a  winter's 
night,  and  taking  the  British  commander's  force  by  sur- 
prise, achieved  one  of  his  most  signal  victories  ;  numbers 
of  the  Hessians  were  killed,  upwards  of  a  thousand  made 
prisoners,  and  the  rest  fled  to  Bordentown,  while  (so  at 
least,  says  the  American  historian)  only  nine  Americans 
fell  in  the  engagement. 

Ten  miles  further  brought  us  to  Princeton,  celebrated  for 
its  college  under  the  management  of  presbyterians.  Here 
another  battle  was  fought  during  the  revolutionary  war. 
Kingston,  New  Brunswick,  Rahway,  Elizabethtown,  and 
Newark  were  passed  in  the  dark. 

We  found  our  friend,  the  rector  of  Hoboken,  occupying  a 
pleasant  residence  overlooking  a  great  part  of  that  favourite 
rural  retreat.  Hoboken  is  famed  for  its  woods  and  gar- 
dens, and  is  as  much  frequented  by  the  New  Yorkers  as 
Kensington  and  Hampstead  by  the  Londoners.  Here, 
however,  as  almost  every  where  in  the  United  States,  the 
levelling  and  innovating  spirit  of  utilitarianism  is  soon  to 
sweep  away  its  picturesque  beauties.  The  natural  inequal- 
ities of  the  ground,  now  covered  with  trees,  and  intersected 
with  winding  walks  along  a  most  beautiful  shore,  are 
already  "laid  off" — "planned"— as  a  branch  of  the  city. 
The  ground  is  to  be  levelled,  and  filthy  unsightly  streets, 
arranged  at  right  angles  like  a  chess-board,  are  to  take  the 
place  of  gardens  and  shrubberies  whose  beauty  now  draws 
thousands  from  the  close  unwholesome  city  on  every  Sun- 
day and  holiday  to  wander  through  the  verdant  glades, 
and  taste  the  health-giving  breezes  from  the  bay.  The 
board  of  health  ought  to  forbid  such  a  spoliation  ! 

18 


274        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

After  an  agreeable  visit,  which  we  promised  to  repeat, 
we  returned  to  Newark,  where  I  beame  acquainted  with 
Dr.  Chapman  and  Mr.  Henderson,  the  rectors  of  the  two 
parishes  of  Gracechurch  and  Trinity,  in  that  city.  There 
are  about  19,000  inhabitants  in  Newark,  which  stands  on 
the  Passaic  river,  fifteen  miles  below  the  Falls.  Its  streets 
are  wide  and  well  shaded,  the  greatest  architectural  orna- 
ment is  Trinity  church  which  stands  in  an  open  green  in 
the  centre  of  the  city. 

Dr.  Chapman,  with  whom  we  spent  part  of  the  day,  and 
whom  I  have  since  frequently  met  on  different  occasions,  is 
the  well-known  author  of  several  volumes  of  controversial 
sermons,  which  show  an  uncommon  depth  of  learning,  and 
are  masterpieces  of  pulpit  composition.  No  publications 
have  proved  so  successful  in  bringing  over  members  of 
other  denominations  to  the  Church,  as  Dr.  Chapman's; 
several  of  the  clergy,  formerly  presbyterian  and  baptist 
ministers,  were  converted  by  the  arguments  and  proofs  in 
his  sermons  to  "  Presbyterians  of  all  sects." 

After  being  hospitably  entertained  at  Mr.  John  H.  Ste- 
phen's, one  of  the  parishioners  of  Gracechurch,  I  accom- 
panied Mr.  Davies  to  his  own  parish  of  Belleville,  four 
miles  up  the  river.  The  place  is  deservedly  regarded  as 
one  of  the  most  picturesque  and  healthy  villages  near  New 
York,  several  of  whose  wealthiest  citizens  have  built  their 
country  seats  here.  We  were  received  by  Colonel  West, 
an  English  half  pay  officer,  whose  American  investments 
had  led  him  to  take  up  his  residence  in  the  country.  He 
occupied  a  tasteful  villa  on  a  high  bank,  thickly  wooded, 
and  ornamentally  laid  out,  overlooking  the  beautiful  stream 
of  the  Passaic  where  he  had  also  built  a  Chinese  fishing 
house.  In  this  charming  retreat,  commanding  a  wide  ex- 
panse of  land  and  water,  very  similar  to  the  view  from 
Richmond  Hill,  I  spent  several  days  visiting  families  in  the 


MR.    STUYVESANT.  275 

neighbourhood,  meeting  dinner  parties  at  the  Colonel's 
house,  and  fishing  in  the  well-stocked  stream. 

The  Sunday  after  our  arrival  I  preached  for  Mr.  Davies, 
whose  congregation  was  occupying  a  temporary  building 
whilst  the  church,  which  had  been  destroyed  by  an  incen- 
diary, was  re-erecting.  Among  the  worshippers  was  Mr. 
Peter  Stuyvesant,  the  lineal  descendant  of  the  immortal- 
ized Governor  of  New  York  of  the  same  name,  whose  de- 
cision of  character,  statesmanship,  and  prowess  are  all  re- 
corded with  historical  fidelity  in  Washington  Irving's  "  His- 
tory" of  that  state.  I  confess  I  never  was  so  interested  in  a 
new  acquaintance  since  my  first  arrival  in  America.  What 
man,  woman,  or  child  in  England  is  not  familiar  with  the 
deeds  of  "  Peter  the  Headstrong  ?"  I  next  day  had  the  grati- 
fication of  seeing  the  original  portrait  of  the  hero  at  Mr.  Van 
Ranssalaer's,  and  of  spending  the  day  in  the  old  hall  of  the 
present  worthy  representative  of  this  truly  noble  house. 

The  occasion  was  the  visit  of  the  Bishop  of  New  Jersey 
to  the  parish  to  administer  confirmation,  when  he  was  ac- 
companied by  several  of  his  clergy.  The  clerical  party, 
with  other  neighbouring  gentry,  were  entertained  by  Mr. 
Stuyvesant  in  a  manner  rarely  exceeded  in  the  highest 
English  circles.  The  house  itself  is  the  most  baronial 
looking  country  mansion  I  have  seen  in  the  United  States  ; 
and  stands  in  the  centre  of  a  park  dotted  with  clumps  of 
forest  trees.  Its  owner  is  the  third  man  in  the  country  for 
his  wealth,  which  is  seen  in  every  part  of  his  fine  estab- 
lishment. His  hospitality  is  unbounded,  and  his  religious 
and  charitable  endowments  and  gifts  are  on  an  equal  scale 
of  munificence. 

The  whole  party  attended  the  evening  service  of  the 
church  ;  after  which  music,  paintings,  books,  and  works 
of  virtu  occupied  the  attention  till  supper,  which  was  cold, 
and  for  its  variety  and  the  character  of  the  viands  was 


276  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

as  recherche  as  the  most  fastitidious  London  gourmand 
could  desire. 

The  next  day  was  a  renewal  of  the  social  enjoyments  in 
this  delightful  abode  of  refinement  and  good  breeding,  when 
our  host's  beautiful  niece  played  and  sung  several  foreign 
airs  in  a  superior  style.  This  young  lady  was  in  fact  the 
life  of  the  company  ;  her  extreme  loveliness,  greatly  set  off 
by  sprightly  manners  and  uncommon  intelligence,  made 
her  the  focus  of  admiration. 

After  dinner  we  set  out  in  different  carriages,  three  of 
which  were  supplied  by  our  liberal  entertainer,  for  Orange, 
where  the  bishop  held  his  next  visitation.  The  ride  took 
us  through  a  beautiful  part  of  the  country,  and  on  reaching 
Orange,  I  was  agreeably  surprised  by  meeting  the  new 
Bishop  of  Maryland,  who  had  arrived  the  same  day  on  a 
visit  to  some  relatives. 

Many  of  my  English  readers  have  seen  and  heard  the 
Bishop  of  New  Jersey,  and  to  such,  any  description  of  his 
appearance  and  style  would  be  tedious.  I  have  only  in 
this  place,  to  express  the  strong  gratification  I  experienced 
when  I  first  heard  him  preach  at  Belleville,  which  was  in- 
creased on  each  subsequent  occasion.  The  deep  tones  of 
his  musical  voice,  the  graceful  character  of  his  elocution, 
with  the  clearness  and  simplicity  of  his  style,  are  no  less 
admired  amongst  the  numerous  flocks  over  which  he  is  a 
chief  shepherd,  than  they  were  in  the  noble  fanes  of  Eng- 
land. Whenever  he  appears,  crowds  of  delighted  listen- 
ers attend  his  preaching,  as  well  out  of  his  own  diocess 
as  in  it. 

After  witnessing  part  of  the  religious  exercises  at  Orange, 
I  left  on  the  following  morning,  (Wednesday,  Sept.  30th) 
with  Bishop  Whittingham  and  Messrs.  Ward  and  Davies 
for  New  York,  to  attend  the  Convention  of  the  diocess 
whose  sittings  commenced  the  same  day. 


CHAPTER  XLIV. 

NEW    YORK    CONVENTION. THE    BISHOP     OF    ILLINOIS. 

DR.    SEABURY. 

At  the  hour  of  divine  service,  the  spacious  church  of  St. 
Paul  was  filled  to  overflowing.  The  Bishops  of  New  York, 
Illinois,  and  Maryland  occupied  seats  in  the  chancel,  and 
the  clergy  and  lay  delegates  filled  the  body  of  the  church, 
the  gallery  being  crowded  with  spectators.  The  bishop  of 
the  diocess  delivered  on  this  occasion  his  triennial  charge, 
besides  the  address,  and  the  Communion  was  administered 
by  the  three  prelates  to  the  vast  body  of  communicants. 

I  derived  the  greatest  gratification  on  this  occasion  from 
the  long  anticipated  pleasure,  which  was  enhanced  by  its 
unexpectedness,  of  seeing  the  venerable  Bishop  of  Illinois, 
and  receiving  the  Communion  from  his  hand.  The  first 
name  that  I  had  heard  in  my  own  country  in  connection 
with  the  American  Church  ;  the  pioneer  of  gospel  truth 
and  apostolic  order  to  the  western  wilds  of  the  great  Ameri- 
can continent ;  the  founder  of  Kenyon  College — that  was 
enough  ! — taking  with  it  the  remembrance  of  the  difficulties 
which  he  encountered,  the  sore  trials  he  underwent  in  ob- 
taining the  means  to  commence  his  undertaking,  and  his 
patient  endurance  of  persecution  and  opposition  of  every 
kind,  both  then  and  after  his  wTork  was  commenced,  enough 
to  break  an  ordinary  man's  spirit.  The  founder  of  Kenyon 
College  was  a  title  high  enough,  without  that  of  "  bishop," 
or  "  right  reverend,"  to  invest  him  with  interest,  sufficient 


278  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

to  make  the  day  that  I  first  saw  him  a  positive  era  in  my 
American  history.  In  person  this  distinguished  prelate 
(and  now  primate)  is  tall  and  robust,  with  flowing  hair  sur- 
mounted by  a  black  silk  cap,  which  is  always  worn.  His 
manners  are  gentlemanly  and  dignified,  and  his  whole  ap- 
pearance prepossessing. 

While  waiting  in  New  York  during  the  month  of  Octo- 
ber and  part  of  November,  I  received  intelligence  from  Eng- 
land which  made  me  again  desirous  of  removing  perma- 
nently to  my  own  country.  I,  therefore,  formally  relin- 
quished my  parish  at  York  by  letter,  and  after  spending  the 
winter  in  Philadelphia,  set  out  on  a  trip  to  the  west,  pre- 
paratory to  taking  what  I  intended  to  be  my  final  leave  of 
the  United  States.  In  both  I  was  deceived  :  the  western 
trip,  from  my  commencing  it  too  early,  took  me  no  fur- 
ther than  Ohio,  and  during  the  Christmas  season  the  re- 
newal of  an  acquaintance  with  the  family  of  a  clerical 
friend,  referred  to  in  a  previous  chapter,  led  to  a  connection 
which  changed  my  final  return  to  England  to  a  mere  wed- 
ding trip. 

The  lengthened  visit  at  New  York  introduced  me  to 
some  agreeable  associations.  I  preached  each  Sunday  in 
the  city  or  neighbourhood.  At  Hoboken,  where  I  officiated 
three  Sundays  successively,  I  contracted  an  intimacy  with 
the  amiable  rector  (Mr.  Ward,)  and  Mr.  Van  Boskerck's 
family,  which  will  always  be  remembered  as  among  the 
most  agreeable  of  my  American  reminiscences.  I  heard 
Mr.  Price,  Mr.  Cooke,  (Dr.  Milnor's  assistant,)  Mr.  Marcus, 
Dr.  Wainwright,  Dr.  Seabury,  Mr.  Morris,  (the  rector  of 
Trinity  School,)  and  Mr.  Higbee. 

Mr.  Price,  rector  of  St.  Stephen's,  is  the  third  successor 
in  that  parish  of  the  late  Bishop  Moore  of  Virginia.  He  is 
one  of  the  loveliest  Christian  characters  I  met  with  in  the 
country,  and  in  addition  to  excellent  oratorical  powers,  the 


DR.    SEABURY.  279 

best  reader  of  the  Church  service  I  ever  heard.  In  his 
vestry-room  I  was  introduced  to  the  Bishop  of  Ohio. 

Mr.  Marcus,  who  is  of  Jewish  birth,  formerly  belonged  to 
the  Church  of  England.  He  has  been  about  ten  years 
transferred  to  the  American  Church,  and  is  additionally  at- 
tached to  the  country  by  his  own  second  marriage,  and  the 
marriage  of  a  daughter  to  one  of  his  parishioners. 

Dr.  Samuel  Seabury  is  the  grandson  of  the  first  Ameri- 
can bishop,  consecrated  in  Scotland,  and  one  of  the  most 
distinguished  lights  of  the  Church.  He  inherits  all  the 
devotion  to  her  cause  and  the  staunch  orthodoxy  of  his  an- 
cestor, with  added  brilliancy  of  talent  as  a  writer  and  con- 
troversialist. No  man  is  better  armed  for  polemical  war- 
fare, both  from  his  ripe  scholarship,  extensive  reading,  and 
the  wide  grasp  of  his  mind.  Romanist,  non-episcopalian, 
and  infidel  have  each  entered  the  lists,  and  been  successive- 
ly worsted.  The  Churchman,  of  which  he  is  the  editor,  is 
the  official  organ  of  the  New  York  bishop  with  his  diocess, 
and  in  some  respects  the  established  organ  of  the  whole 
American  Church.  The  leading  articles  of  this  able  senti- 
nel are  not  surpassed  by  the  ablest  writers  in  the  British 
Quarterlies,  and  Monthlies. 

I  yielded  to  a  spirit  of  curiosity  on  a  very  unfavourable 
afternoon,  and  set  out  in  a  cab  for  the  church  of  the  Annun- 
ciation, of  which  Dr.  Seabury  is  rector.  It  is  a  plain  building 
in  the  northwest  quarter  of  the  town,  about  two  miles  from 
Murray-street,  my  regular  stopping  place.  The  altar  in  this 
church  occupies  its  proper  position,  raised  on  a  platform  of 
proper  height,  and  in  the  centre  of  the  eastern  extremity. 
At  this  Dr.  Seabury  performed  the  devotional  parts  of  the 
service ;  reading  the  lessons  and  delivering  his  sermon  from 
a  lecture,  as  recommended  by  the  Bishops  of  New  York, 
New  Jersey  and  Maryland.  The  sermon  was  equal  to  my 
highest  expectations,  and  was  listened  to  by  a  full  attend- 


#  • 

280         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

ance  of  worshippers  with  close  attention,  which  its  argu- 
mentation, and  skilful  context  drew  forth ;  though  the 
preacher  aimed  at  none  of  the  flights  of  elocutionary  dis- 
play. He  has  little  animation,  and  preserves  nearly  the 
same  tone  of  voice  throughout  the  address,  but  the  atten- 
tion of  the  hearer  is  kept  up  to  the  last  by  the  rich  vein  of 
thought  that  runs  through  the  whole. 


M 


•■# 


• 


CHAPTER  XLV. 

THE    PEW    NUISANCE. THE    CHURCH    verSUS    A 

"  FASHIONABLE    DENOMINATION." 

Old  Heathendom's  vast  temples 

Held  men  of  every  fate ; 
The  steps  of  far  Benares 

Commingle  small  and  great ; 
The  dome  of  Saint  Sophia 

Confounds  all  human  state. 

The  aisles  of  blessed  Peter 

Are  open  all  the  year ; 
Throughout  wide  Christian  Europe 

The  Christian's  right  is  clear — 
To  use  God's  house  in  freedom 

Each  man  the  other's  peer — 

Milneb. 

They  lie  in  valleys  buried  deep, 

They  stud  the  barren  hills  ; 
They're  mirror'd  where  proud  rivers  sweep, 

And  by  the  humbler  rills ; 
A  blessing  on  each  holy  fane, 

Wherever  they  may  stand, 
With  open  door  for  rich  and  poor, 

The  churches  of  our  land ! 

Talk  not  of  England's  "wooden  walls," 

Her  better  strength  is  here ; 
Here  trust  around  the  spirit  falls, 

Subduing  doubt  and  fear; 
Here  her  brave  sons  have  gather'd  power, 

Nerving  each  heart  and  hand — 
Most  fearless  prove  those,  who  best  love 

The  churches  of  our  land. 

They  stand  the  guardians  of  the  faith 

For  which  our  fathers  died  : 
God  keep  those  temples  still  from  scathe, 

Our  blessing  and  our  pride ! 
Our  energies,  our  deeds,  our  prayers, 

All  these  should  they  command, 
That  never  foe  may  lay  them  low, 

The  churches  of  our  land. 

Mary  Anne  Erown. 

The  day  after  my  return  to  Philadelphia  I  met  an  old 
Rhode  Island  friend  and  colleague  under  the  trees  fronting 


282        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

the  State  House,  in  the  person  of  Lewis  Jansen,*  who  in- 
vited me  to  visit  him  at  his  parish  of  Manayunk,  to  which 
he  had  lately  been  appointed.  Mr.  Jansen  was  a  native  of 
England,  the  grandson  of  a  French  peer  whose  title  and  es- 
tates were  irretrievably  lost  during  the  revolution  in  that 
country.  He  has  resided  about  sixteen  years  in  America, 
where  he  has  brought  up  a  large  family.  Having  long 
contemplated  a  visit  to  the  interesting  and  beautifully  situ- 
ated spot  which  had  become  the  scene  of  his  labours,  I 
spent  the  next  Sunday  at  his  dwelling  on  the  banks  of  the 
peaceful  Schuylkill,  and  preached  in  his  church.  The  lat- 
ter is  a  good  specimen  of  rural  church  architecture,  with  a 
high  square  tower  of  fine  proportions. 

Manayunk  is  situated  seven  miles  from  Philadelphia,  ap- 
proached by  the  best  Macadamised  road  out  of  that  city, 
which  leads  to  Norristown  and  Reading.  A  little  out  of 
this  road  another  diverges  to  the  side  of  the  Schuylkill 
river,  from  which  it  is  separated  by  a  substantial  stone 
parapet.  In  a  few  moments  the  busy  town  of  Manayunk, 
with  its  water-mill  factories  and  stone-built  dwellings,  ap- 
pears in  view,  rendered  more  picturesque  by  the  variegated 
foreground  of  bush,  brake,  river  and  sloping  shores,  and  its 
distant  back-ground  of  blue  hills.  The  view,  aided  as  it 
is  by  a  handsome  bridge,  whose  arches  spanning  the 
stream  breaks  the  prospect,  is  one  of  surpassing  loveliness  ; 
often  does  the  traveller,  when  he  reaches  this  turn  in  the 
road,  stop  and  gaze  involuntarily  at  its  picturesque  beauty. 

My  friend  had  taken  his  new  charge  at  the  earnest  re- 
quest of  the  principal  parishioners,  to  whom  he  had  been 
recommended  by  the  last  incumbent.  His  duties  were, 
however,  more  onerous  than  those  which  fell  to  him  in  his 
former  parish,  on  account  of  the  large  population  of  Eng- 
lish and  Irish  protestant  emigrants  who  were  employed  in 

*  A  first  cousin  to  Madame  Vestris. 


MANAYUNK.  283 

the  mills,  and  nearly  all  of  whom  came  under  his  pastoral 
cognizance.  The  church  had  been  built  originally  for  this 
class  ;  to  whom  it  had  proved  during  the  rectorship  of  the 
former  pastor,  (the  Rev.  Frederick  Freeman)  an  eminent 
blessing.  The  principal  manufacturer  of  the  town,  Mr. 
Joseph  Ripka,  aided  by  two  Philadelphia  gentlemen,  named 
Wagner,  were  the  founders  of  this  praiseworthy  design  to 
give  to  the  poor  episcopalians  of  the  town  a  parish  temple. 
Several  respectable  inhabitants  formerly  from  Ireland,  who 
were  owners  of  property  in  the  town,  assisted  in  the  under- 
taking. One  who  was  a  builder  contributed  a  portion  of 
the  stone  ;  another,  lumber ;  and  all  their  labour.  The 
building  rose  under  the  direction  of  a  gentleman  of  consid- 
erable architectural  skill,  who  owned  a  country  seat  in  the 
neighbourhood.*  It  was  completed  and  consecrated  in 
1838  ;  Mr.  Jansen  was  the  third  incumbent  of  the  parish. 

I  was  much  interested  in  the  condition  of  this  parish 
from  the  history  of  its  origin  and  progress ;  and  became 
more  so  when,  on  entering  the  reading  desk,  I  observed  a 
spectacle,  common  enough  in  England  though  very  un- 
usual in  American  episcopal  churches,  yet  which  is  the 
only  type  of  the  Church  Triumphant — viz.,  worshippers  of 
different  ranks  kneeling  at  one  altar  and  worshipping  one 
Saviour.  There  sat  the  rich  manufacturer,  and  there  the 
tradesman,  and  there  the  hardy  mechanic,  and  there  the 
humble,  but  cleanly  looking  operative,  with  his  healthy 
family — all  joining  in  the  responsive  acts  of  worship,  as 
their  fathers  had  done,  and  listening  attentively  to  the 
words  of  instruction  from  the  pulpit.  In  an  instant  I  was 
transported  back  to  my  native  land  ;  where,  following  the 
same  primitive  pattern,  the  peer  and  the  peasant,  the  noble 
and  the  very  pauper,  worship  under  the  same  roof,  and  lis- 
ten to  the   same  preacher  ;    and  where,  in  many  places, 

*  Andrew  Young,  Esq. 

# 


284        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

church-people  now  understand  the  spirit  of  Christianity  so 
well  that  a  common  bench  serves  for  all  without  distinc- 
tion. 

It  is  a  radical  fault  in  the  American  church,  and,  if  coun- 
tenanced, must  work  as  rottenness  in  her  bones,  that  she  is 
oftentimes  so  exhibited,  that  the  poor  are  actually  repelled 
from  her  communion.  It  is  lamentable  to  see  how  this 
wretched  policy  sometimes  drives  whole  communities  of 
emigrant  English  families  into  the  ranks  of  dissent.  A 
church  is  erected,  the  whole  floor  occupied  with  pews,  which 
are  luxuriously  furnished,  and  sold  or  let  at  prices  which 
excludes  every  poor  member  of  the  Church  from  the  sacred 
precincts,  and,  in  some  cases,  gives  to  non-episcopalians  of 
means  and  wealth  the  controlling  influence  in  the  parish 
affairs  !  It  is  true  that  by  the  xxxi  Canon  of  the  Church, 
every  episcopalian  resident  within  certain  fixed  boundaries 
is  a  parishioner,  and  claims  by  ecclesiastical  law  the  ser- 
vices and  spiritual  care  of  the  rector,  yet  what  accommoda- 
tion is  made  for  the  poorer  churchmen  and  their  families  to 
worship  God  in  ninety-nine  out  of  every  hundred  churches 
which  are  built  ?  Have  the  poor  of  the  American  Episco- 
pal Church  the  gospel  preached  to  them  7  No  !  not  in 
fifty  parishes  out  of  the  twelve  hundred  which  are  provided 
with  parish  temples — not  in  fifty  of  them  on  a  fair  compu- 
tation. 

Have  the  great  majority  of  parishioners  who  frequently 
occupy  no  seats  at  church,  being  unable  to  afford  the  exor- 
bitant price  required  for  them,  as  much  of  the  minister's  at- 
tention and  guardianship  as  the  more  wealthy  ones  who  are 
the  owners  of  the  pews  ?— they  require — they  demand  moie, 
double  the  attention  of  those  whose  wealth  can  purchase  a 
seat  in  the  parish  temple,  every  foot  of  which  has  been 
solemnly  made  common  to  all  worshippers  by  the  act  of 
consecration,  and  which  it  is  sacrilege  to  enclose  and  occupy 


a  "voluntary"  church.  285 

with  pews  for  the  convenience  of  the  wearers  of  silk  and 
jewelry,  whose  accomodations  occupy  so  much  room  that 
the  poor  are  thrust  out  of  the  Lord's  courts. 

The  constitution,  canons,  and  Prayer  Book,  and  the  pre- 
tensions of  the  Church  episcopal  in  the  United  States  do 
not  in  any  place  recognize  such  a  thing  as  a  rich  man's 
Church — a  genteel  denomination  —  a  fashionable  sect. 
Episcopacy  is  declared  to  be  a  divine  institution ;  nay,  in 
some  of  her  formularies,  and  many  of  her  standards,  as  es- 
sential to  the  very  being  of  a  true  Church  ;  the  exclusive 
validity  of  her  sacraments,  whether  a  true  or  false  theory, 
is  constantly  maintained  by  her  clergy  and  laity ;  and  lit- 
urgical worship  is  pronounced  the  only  edifying  one.  Yet 
with  these  large  claims,  Church  privileges  are  in  effect  ex- 
tended only  to  the  rich  ;*  whilst  the  poor  are  suffered  to 

*  The  following  letter  addressed  to  the  Philadelphia  "  Public  Ledger,"  with 
the  accompanying  strictures,  will  serve  as  an  illustration  of  a  crying  evil  in  the 
American  religious  system. 

Messrs.  Editors: — You  will  confer  a  favour  by  an  insertion  of  the  following, 
which  took  place,  on  Sunday  evening.  A  lady  and  gentleman  from  the  south 
went  to  St.  Luke's  church,  and  finding  a  pew  unoccupied,  went  into  it.  Ser- 
vice commenced,  when  another  gentleman  and  lady  entered,  owners,  I  presume, 
of  the  pew  in  question,  and  caused  the  two  stangers  to  be  ejected,  which  ulti- 
mately obliged  them  to  leave  the  church.  I  know  you  are  friends  to  the  proper 
rules  of  decorum,  and  most  sincerely  lament  such  want  of  courtesy  and  good 
breeding.  Should  this  meet  the  eye  of  the  lady  and  gentleman  in  question,  it 
is  sincerely  hoped  they  will  exhibit  a  better  feeling  than  they  displayed  on  Sun- 
day evening,  particularly  at  a  time  when  the  evening  services  of  the  church  are 
alike  open  to  strangers  as  well  as  members. 

A  Citizen  or  Philadelphia. 

On  this  the  "  Baptist  Watchman"  thus  comments,  under  the  head  of  "  Pews, 
or  the  Devil's  Toll  Gates:" — 

"  Splendidly  carpeted  aisles,  pews  to  match,  cushioned  and  carpeted ;  with 
brass  spittoons,  brass  name  plates  on  the  pew  doors,  may  be  compared  to  the 
devil's  turnpikes  in  the  aisles,  and  his  toll  gates  in  the  labelled  pew  doors.  Let 
not  the  pew-seyites  call  this  a  rude  or  harsh  camparison,  for  not  to  call  things 
by  their  proper  names  is  only  one  degree  removed  from  worshipping  the  devil, 
and  St.  Lucifer's  churches  would  be  more  german  to  the  truth  than  St.  Luke's 


286  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

wander  into  all  the  mazes  of  ruinous  schism  and  even  of 
scepticism.  This  fact  in  relation  to  the  American  Church, 
which  I  record  in  the  deepest  sorrow,  it  must  be  admitted 
is  a  strong  argument  in  favour  of  an  endowed  national 
religion.  The  noble  Bishop  of  New  Jersey  has  done 
something  towards  the  correction  of  the  evil  in  the  establish- 
ment of  Sunday  offerings  and  parochial  schools ;  let  him 
follow  up  his  plans  of  improvement,  and  let  others,  instead 
of  weakening  and  endeavouring  to  embarrass  him  in  his 
schemes  of  far-sighted  policy,  strengthen  his  hands  and 
second  his  efforts. 

Christmas  Day,  1840. — I  this  day  accompanied  two 
clerical  brethren  to  St.  Luke's.  It  is  a  new  building  of 
large  dimensions,  lately  erected  in  the  fashionable  quarter 
of  the  town.  Mr.  Spear,  rector  of  the  parish,  preached  on 
the  occasion  to  an  overflowing  audience.  His  sermon  was 
a  practical  one,  delivered  with  good  effect,  and  particularly 
appropriate.  The  building  is  a  Grecian  design,  with  Co- 
rinthian portico  and  columns  in  front,  and  classic  decorations 
in  the  interior,  but  the  bright  colours,  and  prevalence  of 
white  throughout  the  church,  especially  at  the  altar  end, 
was  a  severe  trial  to  the  eyes,  which  the  sofa-backed  pews 
failed  to  make  endurable. 

or  St.  Philips',  for  all  pew-seyite  temples  of  pride  and  vanity.  God's  temples 
should  have  inscribed  on  their  portals,  '  Open  to  All,  Closed  to  None.' 

"  Velvet  and  silk,  gilt  and  costly  embellishments, — are  these  necessary  to 
prayer,  to  worship  1  The  Master  said,  "  where  two  or  three  are  gathered  together 
in  my  name,  there  am  I  in  the  midst  of  them,"  The  inconsistency  we  have 
thus  exposed  begets  another,  and  that  is  the  anxiety  of  modern  Christians  to 
imitate  the  ancient  Jews  in  loving  the  chief  seats  in  these  synagogues — these 
pews — as  though  the  seat  and  its  location  were  of  such  importance  that  with- 
out both  are  to  the  whim  of  the  church  goers,  they  cannot  worship !  Two  or 
tliree  hundred  dollars  paid  for  a  spot  in  the  church  to  sit  in! !  Oh  !  this  money 
changing !  oh !  the  selling  doves  of  modern  Christians." 

Such  a  rebuke,  though  rather  coarsely  applied,  is  well  merited.  Where  will 
the  most  costly  fanes  of  England  furnish  a  similar  example  of  effeminate  luxuri- 
ousness,  and  anti-Chrislian  monopoly  1 


CHAPTER  XLVI. 


THE    ALLEGHANIES. 


On  Saturday  the  30th  of  January  I  set  off  on  my  pur- 
posed western  tour,  and  reached  Columbia  the  same  day. 
This  populous  town,  which  I  had  before  frequently  visited, 
during-  my  stay  at  York,  lies  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Sus- 
quehanna, and  possesses  great  facilities  for  trade  by  its 
canal  communication  with  Havre  de  Grace  at  the  mouth  of 
that  important  river,  and  the  railroad  east  and  west  which, 
passes  through  it.  A  bridge  of  a  mile's  length  unites  it  to 
Wrightsville,  on  the  opposite  bank.  The  river  prospects  in 
this  neighbourhood  are  particularly  fine.  I  found  the  same 
kind  receptions  from  a  circle  of  private  priends  in  Columbia 
that  I  often  before  experienced,  which  will  live  in  my  re- 
membrance as  long  at  least  as  gratitude  and  appreciation 
of  worth  is  an  emotion  of  my  breast.  Here  I  spent  Sun- 
day. 

The  next  day,  after  visiting  several  of  my  late  parish- 
ioners* living  in  Columbia  and  Wrightsville,  I  proceeded  to 
York,  where,  though  fain  to  prosecute  my  journey  the 
same  day,  I  was  detained  by  the  importunity  of  friends  till 
Saturday.  Mr.  Campbell,  the  vestry's  secretary,  informed 
me  that  several  applications  had  been  made  for  the  rector- 
ship of  the  parish  since  my  resignation  was  received,  but 

*  Messrs.  Houston,  Atkins,  Schull,  (ex-churchwarden)  Shults  and  Mifflin.  In 
these  worthy  families  nothing  of  good  English  hospitality  and  refinement  were 
wanting. 


288  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

that  the  general  preference  of  the  vestry  and  congregation 
seemed  in  favour  of  Mr.  John  H.  Marsden,  the  principal  of  a 
young  ladies'  seminary  in  the  adjoining  county  of  Adams, 
who  was  about  to  resign  his  post  on  account  of  ill  health, 
which  the  confinement  of  school  keeping  aggravated.  This 
information  gave  me  the  liveliest  pleasure  from  a  knowl- 
edge of  Mr.  Marsden's  devotedness  and  efficiency.  He  had 
been  admitted  to  Holy  Orders  in  St.  John's,  and  was  per- 
sonally acquainted  with  several  of  the  parishioners,  whose 
children  had  been  trained  at  his  school. 

Bidding  a  final  adieu  to  York,  I  travelled  in  a  stage 
coach  along  the  turnpike  to  Chambersburg,  distant  seventy 
miles,  where  I  spent  the  Sunday.  The  road  took  me  through 
Abbotstown,  and  Gettysburg,  the  former  a  Dutch  looking 
village  in  Adams  county  where  we  dined,  and  the  latter  the 
shire  town  of  the  same,  and  the  seat  of  a  Lutheran  college 
and  Theological  Seminary. 

Chambersburg  is  the  capital  of  the  next  county  of 
Franklin,  situated  in  the  midst  of  a  fertile  valley,  on  one  of 
the  tributary  rivers  of  the  Potomac.  On  looking  out  of  the 
coach,  as  we  drove  up  to  the  inn,  I  perceived  that  a  heavy 
fall  of  snow  had  commenced  since  the  day  closed,  and 
every  object  was  concealed  with  the  fleecy  covering.  The 
storm  continued  all  day,  and  was  succeeded  in  the  evening 
by  a  sharp  frost.  I  began  to  question  the  expediency  of 
prosecuting  my  journey  in  the  winter  (which  seemed  to  be 
almost  closed  when  I  left  Philadelphia),  but  being  unable 
to  postpone  it,  and  determined  at  all  risks  to  see  Cincinnati, 
I  proceeded  by  the  railroad  to  Hagerstown,  in  Maryland, 
through  which  the  "  National  Road"  to  Wheeling  passes. 

The  covering  of  snow  gave  Hagerstown  a  very  dismal 
appearance.  The  town  ranks  the  third,  I  believe,  in  Mary- 
land ;  the  houses  are  handsomely  built  of  stone  and  brick, 
and   the   inns   are  commodious  and  well   appointed.     St. 


THE    ALLEGHANIES. 


289 


John's,  the  parish  church,  is  one  of  the  largest  and  best  con- 
structed in  the  state. 

The  capacious  stage  was  soon  filled  with  male  travellers, 
and  the  journey  over  the  Alleghanies  commenced  in  good 
earnest.  The  national  road,  which  we  followed,  runs  in  a 
very  direct  line  through  all  the  middle  states  of  the  Union 
to  the  westernmost  part  of  civilized  habitation,  and  is  in- 
tended to  be  carried  to  the  Rocky  Mountains.  It  was  a 
government  undertaking,  and  is  well  Macadamized  ;  equal 
in  all  respects,  except  the  absence  of  any  raised  side-walks, 
to  an  English  turnpike.  Our  six  horses  were  in  excellent 
condition,  and  the  passengers  (as  American  travellers  al- 
ways are)  were  in  excellent  spirits. 

The  ascent  was  very  gradual,  and  the  road  undulating 
till  we  reached  Prattsville,  a  small  village  at  the  foot  of 
Rugged  Mountain,  which  disclosed,  when  we  reached  its 
summit,  an  extensive  and  variegated  prospect.  The  snow 
was  melting  fast,  and  the  objects  became  more  defined  as 
we  proceeded,  till  night  closed  in. 

At  Cumberland  we  were  detained  for  some  time,  and 
made  an  early  breakfast  before  proceeding.  It  is  a  town 
of  no  particular  pretensions,  on  the  north  bank  of  the  Po- 
tomac River,  and  near  the  foot  of  another  ascent  called 
Will's  Mountain.  After  a  few  miles  were  passed  the  road 
became  more  precipitous  till  we  reached  the  "  Back  Bone" 
of  the  Alleghany  range,  and  beheld,  on  looking  behind,  a 
view  of  astonishing  extent.  We  were  now  three  thousand 
feet  above  the  level  of  the  ocean,  and  soon  descended  on 
the  west  side  with  fearful  rapidity.  About  twenty  miles 
brought  us  to  the  line  between  the  states  of  Maryland  and 
Pennsylvania,  when  we  again  entered  upon  the  latter,  and 
refreshed  ourselves  at  a  village  called  Petersburg. 

The  next  twenty-five  miles  conducted  us  through  the 
middle  of  Fayette   county,  passing  several   villages   and 

19 


290  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

numerous  farm-houses,  to  Union,  the  shire  town,  which 
we  reached  at  eleven  o'clock.  We  now  pursued  our 
way  in  the  dark  to  Washington,  the  shire  town  of  Wash- 
ington county  and  seat,  of  a  college,  thirty  miles  fur- 
ther, where  we  arrived  at  early  dawn.  Here  we  found 
an  excellent  breakfast  ready  for  us,  to  which,  after  the 
tedious  night  travel  and  a  biting  wind,  we  addressed  our- 
selves with  well-prepared  appetites.  I  began  now  to  find 
that  American  stage  travelling  was  no  joke  ;  and  deter- 
mined that  unless  the  Ohio  river  was  perfectly  free  from  ob- 
struction, to  abandon  any  further  prosecution  of  my  journey 
beyond  Wheeling.  The  road  continued  very  good  till  we 
reached  that  place,  which  was  about  two  in  the  afternoon. 

The  cold  had  increased  ever  since  we  left  Cumberland, 
and  large  masses  of  ice  were  on  the  river  when  we  reached 
Wheeling.  The  broad  Ohio  !  what  sensations  it  awakens 
in  the  traveller's  breast  when  first  beheld ;  flowing  in  its 
onward  course  for  a  thousand  miles  j*  bearing  on  its  bosom 
the  merchandize  of  a  vast  country,  and  carrying  the  living 
freight  of  the  thousands  of  travellers  and  emigrants  who 
annually  pour  into  Western  America. 

We  were  comfortably  housed  at  the  hotel  in  front  of  the 
river,  and  good  coal  fires  made  in  our  private  chambers. 
Having  discovered  that,  excepting  the  episcopal  church,  there 
was  nothing  in  the  dirty  muddy  town  worth  seeing,  I  re- 
turned to  the  hotel  and  spent  the  rest  of  the  day  in  my 
bedroom.  From  the  window  the  view  of  the  opposite 
shore  of  Ohio  presented  a  study  for  the  painter.  A  western 
evening  sky,  reader  hast  thou  ever  seen  one  ?  American 
sunsets  in  the  east  of  the  Continent  greatly  surpass  anything 
seen  in  England,  but  they  are  exceeded  for  brilliancy  and  va- 
riety of  hue  in  the  west,  and  this  one  will  ever  remain  in  my 
recollection  as  the  most  perfect  in  its  beauty  and  radiance. 

*  From  its  source  in  northern  Pennsylvania  fifteen  hundred  miles  long. 


CHAPTER  XLVII. 

THE    OHIO    RIVER. STENBENVILLE. AMERICAN 

CLIMATE. 

As  the  river  navigation  was  greatly  obstructed  by  the 
ice,  I  waited  till  the  afternoon  of  the  next  day  before  a 
steamboat  passed  up,  which  I  entered,  being  desirous  of 
making  a  visit  to  the  Rev.  Mr.  Morse  of  Steubenville,  who, 
it  will  be  remembered  by  my  readers,  and  the  readers  of 
Mr.  Caswell's  interesting  American  Notes,  has  been  one  of 
the  most  active  clergymen  of  the  diocess  of  Ohio  from  its 
earliest  origin.  Mr.  Morse  was  formerly  one  of  only  three 
missionaries  west  of  the  Ohio  river.  Ohio  alone  now  con- 
tains above  sixty  clergymen,  and  the  same  section  of  coun- 
try more  than  double  the  number,  besides  several  bishops  ; 
an  inadequate  number,  it  is  true,  for  the  wants  of  the  popu- 
lation, but  much  greater  than  the  most  sanguine  amongst 
that  devoted  band  of  pioneers  who,  with  Bishop  Chase, 
laid  the  foundations  of  the  western  Church,  ever  expected 
to  behold. 

We  made  slow  progress  in  the  boat  on  account  of  the 
obstruction  caused  by  the  floating  ice  to  the  action  of  the 
paddle-wheels.  Eight  miles  brought  us  to  Warrenton,  on 
the  Ohio  side  where  several  passengers  joined  us.  We 
stopped  again  at  Wellsburg  on  the  opposite  shore,  long 
enough  for  me  to  go  over  it.  It  had  the  usual  complement 
of  Court  House  (being  a  county  town)  county  offices, 
churches,  market  place,  etc.,  with  glass,  cotton  and  carpet 


292  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

manufactories.  Seven  miles  further  brought  us  to  Steuben- 
ville,  which  I  found  a  large,  populous,  and  well  built  town. 
I  preached  in  St.  Paul's  church,  a  handsome  edifice,  the 
same  evening,  and  spent  the  residue  till  a  late  hour  in  the 
society  of  its  excellent  rector,  whom  I  found  one  of  the 
most  agreeable  men  I  had  met  for  a  long  time. 

"  There,"  said  Mr.  Morse,  the  next  day,  pointing  to  an 
extensive  building  overlooking  the  river,  "  is  the  great  se- 
cret of  success  in  planting  the  Church  in  the  western 
states,  whether  ours,  or  the  Presbyterian,  Methodist,  or  Ro- 
manists. There  are  nearly  two  hundred  young  females  in- 
structed under  the  Presbyterian  system.  Who  can  calcu- 
late the  influence  these  afterwards  exert  in  every  part  of 
the  state,  as  mothers  and  teachers." 

I  was  greatly  interested  by  several  of  Mr.  Morse's  narra- 
tives illustrating  the  early  labours  and  difficulties  of  Bishop 
Chase,  whom  he  had  frequently  accompanied  in  his  tedious 
and  self-denying  excursions  among  the  hills  and  forests  of 
Ohio.  He  spoke,  however,  in  high  terms  of  the  present 
bishop,  (Mcllvain.)  1  left  Steubenville  after  a  visit  as  full 
of  pleasure  and  interest  as  I  had  been  led  to  expect. 

The  steamboat  in  which  I  took  my  passage  to  Pittsburgh 
the  next  evening  had  not  proceeded  far  before  the  captain 
began  to  apprehend  a  stoppage  from  the  ice,  and  about  mid- 
night, the  frost  increasing  in  severity,  we  were  made  fast. 
We  had  come  twenty-two  miles  of  our  way,  and  fortunately 
were  opposite  to  a  small  town  called  East  Liverpool,  on  the 
Ohio  side ;  but  so  difficult  of  access  from  the  blocks  of  ice 
and  the  numerous  holes,  that  no  one  ventured  to  cross  the 
whole  day.  Next  morning  the  ice  the  whole  distance  was 
sufficiently  firm,  and  after  numerous  falls,  and  one  more 
serious  catastrophe,  in  which  a  lad  who  exercised  less  cau- 
tion than  the  rest,  was  nearly  drowned,  we  reached  land 


EAST    LIVERPOOL.  293 

with  our  light  luggage,  and  found  temporary  accommoda- 
tion at  an  humble  tavern. 

Here  I  met  with  a  gentleman  who  proved  to  be  the 
churchwarden  of  St.  Stephen's  parish,  whose  church  and 
modest  spire,  I  had  been  told,  belonged  to  the  "  Lulheiian' 
congregation.  We  walked  across  the  field  that  led  to  it, 
and  the  warden  entertained  me  with  the  history  of  the 
parish,  which  was  of  recent  date.  They  were  just  he  said 
deprived  of  the  pastoral  care  of  a  Mr.  Kelly,  who  had  re- 
moved to  another  and  a  larger  parish,  and  of  whom  he 
spoke  in  warm  terms  of  praise.  The  church  was  still  hung 
with  its  Christmas  garlands  of  evergreen. 

Finding  that  the  nearest  point  through  which  any  public 
conveyance  passed  to  Pittsburg  was  at  a  village  about 
twelve  or  fourteen  miles  in  the  interior,  I  hired  a  vehicle, 
and  after  an  intensely  cold  ride,  the  conveyance  being  an 
open  one,  reached  a  miserable  public  house  kept  by  a 
Yorkshireman,  where  I  passed  the  night,  and  proceeded  by 
a  stage  coach  from  Zanesville  at  four  in  the  morning. 
Pittsburg  was  reached  late  in  the  evening.  The  only 
place  of  consequence  passed  this  day  was  Beaver,  a  pleas- 
ant town  on  Great  Beaver  River,  one  of  the  tributaries  to 
the  Ohio.  The  road  for  the  whole  distance  after  entering 
Pennsylvania  affords  constant  views  of  the  latter. 

The  marked  difference  in  the  atmosphere  of  the  interior 
of  the  continent  and  the  Atlantic  coast,  is  vulgarly  attrib- 
uted to  the  timber  forests,  and  the  absence  of  the  same 
degree  of  cultivation.  I  was,  however,  satisfied  from  an 
investigation  of  the  subject,  which  strongly  engaged  my 
curiosity,  that  this  conclusion  is  fallacious.  A  glance  at 
the  physical  features  of  the  American  continent  will,  I 
think,  explain  the  phenomenon.  Two  ranges  of  moun- 
tains extend  from  south  to  north.  The  Rocky  Mountains 
or  western  range,  by  far  the  highest  and  longest,  twelve 


294        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

hundred  feet  above  the  sea's  level,  are  a  continuation  of 
the  Andes  of  South  America,  and  extend  to  the  Arctic 
Ocean.  The  eastern,  or  Appalachian  range,  commences 
near  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  approaches  within  a  short 
distance  of  the  River  of  St.  Lawrence,  a  thousand  miles 
long.  Between  these  two  mountain  systems,  lies  the  wide 
valley,  or  basin  of  the  Mississippi,  the  mountains  extending 
in  pretty  exact  conformity  to  the  continent,  ranging  at 
right  angles  to  each  other.  These  two  lines  of  mountains 
produce  two  slopes  to  the  opposite  shores  ;  and  the  valley 
between  is  formed  likewise  of  two  inclined  plains,  whose 
waters  are  drained  by  the  great  Mississippi  into  the  sea. 
Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  the  superior  elevation  of  the  cen- 
tral parts  of  North  America,  accounts  for  the  difference  of 
temperature,  as  an  elevation  of  three  hundred  and  thirty- 
eight  feet  is  judged  equal  to  a  degree  of  Fahrenheit.  The 
western,  or  more  properly  speaking,  the  interior  of  the  United 
States'  territory,  being  more  exposed  to  the  influence  of  an 
elevated  and  frozen  table  land,  the  cold  is  more  severe  in 
the  winter.  To  this  must  be  added  the  influence  of  the 
ocean  on  the  coast,  which  is  favourable  to  a  milder  and 
more  uniform  temperature. 


CHAPTER  XLVIII. 

PITTSBURG. THE    MOUNTAINS    RECROSSED. 

The  city  of  Pittsburg  is  the  capital  of  Western  Pennsyl- 
vania, the  seat  of  a  university,  the  see  of  a  Romanist 
bishop,  and  "  the  Birmingham  of  America." 

The  latter  appellation,  if  understood  as  signifying  the 
largest  iron,  and  greatest  hardware  manufacturing  town  in 
the  United  States,  is  correct  enough  ;  and  there  is  every 
prospect  of  its  rivalling  our  own  Birmingham  in  population, 
size,  and  the  amount  of  its  manufactures  before  many 
years.  There  are  about  a  dozen  handsome  factories  and 
rolling  mills,  each  sending  out  from  four  to  seven  hundred 
weight  of  goods  per  annum,  worth  collectively  about  290,000 
dollars,  (£60,000)  fourteen  foundries,  annually  converting 
300,000  tons  of  metal  into  castings,  six  brass  foundries,  and 
forty  steam  engines,  and  a  number  of  coppersmiths,  gun- 
smiths, blacksmiths,  and  silversmiths'  shops ;  cutlery  and 
tin  ware  and  cotton  manufactories  ;  extensive  glass  works, 
tanneries,  and  steam  flour  mills.  The  estimated  annual 
value  of  the  manufactories  of  this  Western  Birmingham  I 
have  heard  stated  at  upwards  of  four  millions  of  dollars. 

Nothing  could  be  finer  or  more  advantageous  for  trade 
than  the  situation  of  Pitsburgh.  It  occupies  the  point  of 
land  at  the  junction  of  the  rivers  Alleghany  and  Mononga- 
hela,  at  the  head  of  steamboat  navigation  ;  coal  and  iron 
abound  all  around  it,  and  are  daily  augmenting  its  wealth. 
Its  population  is  fifty  thousand. 


296        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

Trinity  church,  which  occupies  an  eligible  position,  was 
erected  under  the  direction  of  the  present  Bishop  of  Ver- 
mont, formerly  rector  of  the  parish,  and  reflects  the  greatest 
credit  on  his  taste  and  perseverance.  It  is  a  stone  Gothic 
building  of  admirable  proportions,  with  a  fine  tower.  There 
is  also  another  church,  called  St.  Andrew's,  erected  within  a 
few  years.  During  my  visit  in  the  city  I  received  calls  from 
both  rectors,  Dr.  Upford  apd  Mr.  Andrews.  The  former  was 
for  several  years  a  popular  preacher  in  New  York,  and  is 
attended  by  the  most  wealthy  families  of  Pittsburg.  Mr. 
Andrews  was  on  the  point  of  leaving  for  a  foreign  trip  to 
recover  his  health,  which  was  shattered  by  over  exertion  in 
his  parish  duties.  He  has  since  visited  Egypt  and  Greece ; 
the  parish  of  St.  Andrew's  is  now  supplied  by  another 
rector. 

After  several  days  spent  in  Pittsburg,  I  left  on  Thursday 
morning  for  Philadelphia,  taking  another  stage  route  to 
Chambersburg  which  led  through  Greensburg  and  Bedford. 
The  latter  is  celebrated  for  its  springs,  which  are  strongly 
impregnated  with  mineral  qualities,  and  are  chiefly  useful 
in  chronic  attacks.  In  the  summer,  I  was  told,  Bedford 
is  filled  with  visitors,  who  come  for  health  or  pleasure,  or 
both.     It  is  charmingly  situated  among  the  mountains. 

At  Chambersburg  I  took  the  railway  cars  for  Carlisle, 
where  Iliad  an  agreeable  meeting  with  the  rector,  Mr.  Green- 
leaf.  I  received  my  deacon's  orders  at  the  time  that  ho 
was  made  priest,  and  had  constantly  met  him  in  Rhode 
Island,  but  this  was  our  first  interview  in  Pennsylvania,  to 
which  he  had  removed  about  two  years.  I  found  him  fully 
engaged  in  one  of  the  most  important  of  his  duties,  viz., 
catechizing  the  younger  members  of  his  flock. 

The  Church  of  St.  John  at  Carlisle  is  one  of  the  finest 
in  the  diocess,  and  several  of  the  first  families  of  the  state 
for  respectability  and  influence  are  among  the  parishioners. 


STAGE-COACHES.  297 

The  methodists  have  establised  an  institution  here  called 
Dickenson  College,  which  is  a  great  ornament  to  the  town. 
I  reached  Philadelphia  in  one  day  from  Carlisle,  by  way 
of  Ilarrisburg,  having  travelled  in  my  trip  775  miles.  It  is 
utterly  incompatible  with  comfort  to  make  a  journey  by 
stage  in  the  United  States  during  the  winter  season.  The 
coaches,  without  an  exception,  are  open  at  the  sides,  or  only 
protected  by  a  leather  curtain  buttoned  to  the  lower  edge 
of  the  vehicle ;  which,  with  English  ideas  of  comfort,  is  no 
protection  at  all,  as  the  cold  air  is  freely  admitted  through 
numberless  crevices,  and  the  draughts  about  one's  ears,  are, 
if  anything,  worse  than  the  full  benefit  of  the  wind,  which 
is  not  always  the  balmiest  in  the  months  of  January  and 
December.  Why  close  carriages  and  coaches,  public  and 
private,  should  be  so  universally  banished  I  cannot  explain. 
In  no  country  of  the  world,  from  the  changeableness  of  the 
climate,  and  the  severity  of  the  winters,  is  such  a  con- 
venience more  necessary  for  two-thirds  of  the  year,  but 
it  is  a  fact  which  I  can  feelingly  attest,  that  during  the 
whole  term  of  my  residence  in  the  United  States  I  never 
saw  one. 


CHAPTER  XLIX. 

AN    ELOQUENT    PREACHER. REFLECTIONS. 

One  Sunday,  shortly  after  my  return  from  Ohio,  I  enter- 
ed the  church  of  the  Evangelist,  of  which  the  Rev.  Nathan- 
iel S.  Harris  was  rector.  The  sermon  had  reference  to  the 
rite  of  confirmation,  which  was  to  be  administered  in  the 
afternoon  by  the  bishop  of  the  diocess. 

The  message  from  the  preacher's  lips  gave  no  uncer- 
tain sound.  During  the  first  part  of  his  address  repentance 
and  faith  were  held  up  and  enforced  with  the  eloquence  of 
a  Paul ;  "  righteousness,  temperance,  and  judgment  to  come," 
were  topics  in  the  preacher's  hands,  which  arrested  the  at- 
tention, while  they  excited  the  terror  of  the  hearers,  or 
caused  the  tears  of  penitence  to  flow  fast  and  freely  down 
many  a  cheek.  Nothing  of  gospel  truth  was  withheld  ; 
no  leading  doctrine  of  the  Bible  connected  with  this  theme 
was  concealed ;  and  having  reached  this  point,  the  Church 
as  the  ark  of  safety — the  body  of  Christ — the  New  Jeru- 
salem let  down  from  heaven — the  expounder  and  conserva- 
tor of  the  divine  oracles — the  medium  of  spiritual  sanctifi- 
cation,  was  next  set  forth  as  part  of  that  truth  of  God 
which  the  preacher  (in  common  with  every  minister  of  the 
Church)  is  unquestionably  bound  to  proclaim,  though  how 
few,  comparatively,  do  so  in  the  faithful  and  pointed  man- 
ner exhibited  this  morning ! 

I  could  not  but  be  forcibly  reminded  on  this  occasion  of 
a  late  discussion  in  one  of  our  periodicals,  on  the  subject 


NATHANIEL    HARRIS. 


299 


of  the  English  Church's  neglect,  of  popular  instruments, 
particularly  that  of  preaching,  which,  secondary  as  it  is 
in  carrying  on  the  spiritual  life  in  the  soul,  is  eminently 
successful,  when  judiciously  employed,  in  calling  it  into 
existence,  and  in  making  efficacious  the  regenerating  prin- 
ciple of  baptismal  grace.  In  how  many  instances— alas 
they  are  countless  !— is  that  seed  allowed  to  lie  dormant, 
from  the  pastor's  tame  use  of  the  important  ordinance  of 
preaching.  Had  our  Church  the  policy  of  the  Italian, 
Wesley,  Whitfield,  and  Rowland  Hill,  would  never  have 
been  the  founders  of  sects.  They  would  have  been  retain- 
ed by  the  episcopal  heads  of  the  Church,  though,  like  Lati- 
mer the  Reformer,  they  had  been  permitted  to  exercise 
their  favourite  gift  of  preaching  as  itinerants:  of  course, 
under  certain  canonical  restrictions,  to  which  we  cannot 
but  believe,  so  long  as  they  could  travel  about,  they  would 
have  readily  conformed.  Thus  healthy  blood  might  have 
been  injected  into  the  Church,  instead  of  the  creation  of  for- 
midable rival  communions.  But  it  is  too  late  to  spend  re- 
grets for  the  past.  Rather  let  the  Church's  lethargy  du- 
ring so  long  a  reign  of  night,  stimulate  to  redoubled  action, 
and  a  wiser  policy.  The  late  Bishop  Griswold,  who  was 
as  remarkable  for  his  sagacity  as  his  piety,  thus  comments 
on  the  superior  policy  of  the  Roman  church  : — 

"Diversities  of  opinion,  which  divide  protestants  into 
parties  and  sects,  Rome  so  uses  as  to  increase  her  numbers, 
and  strengthen  her  power.  In  this  she  '  is  wiser  in  her 
generation'  than  protestants.  We  are  undoubtedly  unwise 
in  suffering  things  of  little  or  no  importance  to  divide  us ; 
and  not  only  unwise  but  sinful,  in  suffering  such  divisions 
to  excite  animosities  and  uncharitableness  between  those 
of  differing  views.  If  we  would  all  worship  the  same  God 
and  Saviour,  teach  essentially  the  same  doctrines,  in  the 
unity  of  one  and  the  same  Spirit,  and  if  all  of  us  each  in 


300  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

his  own  way  were  to  labour  in  love,  the  ill  effect  of  our  di- 
visions would  be  very  much  diminished.  They  who  be- 
lieve in  and  practice  what  is  essential  to  Christianity  and 
necessary  to  salvation  should  love  as  brethren  ;  and 
especially  at  the  present  time,  when  the  religion  of  Christ 
is  so  powerfully  assailed  by  those  who  add  to  God's  word 
on  the  one  hand,  and  take  from  it  on  the  other,  all  who 
build  on  the  foundation  of  Christ  should  unite  in  one  and 
the  same  spirit.  No  believer  in  Christ  should,  however, 
permit  his  faith  to  be  weakened  or  disturbed  by  these  di- 
visions ;  they  were  foretold  by  Christ  and  his  apostles ;  they 
are  a  fulfilment  of  prophecies ;  and  however  they  may  dis- 
grace religion  they  confirm  its  truth.  And  for  the  encour- 
agement of  protestant  episcopalians  I  would  add,  that  if  our 
Church  adheres  steadfastly  to  her  distinctive  principles,  and 
her  present  standards,  she  is  likely  to  be  a  happy  asylum 
for  all  who  would  avoid  the  idolatrous  corruptions  or  the 
specious  infidelity  by  which  the  religion  of  Christ  is  beset 
on  the  right  and  on  the  left."* 

I  am  aware  of  the  objections  that  would  be  instantly 
raised  to  any  such  "  innovation"^  as  I  have  referred  to  by 
two  classes  of  parochial  clergy,  viz.,  the  old  "  orthodox,"  and 
the  modern  "  evangelical."  One  would  dislike  the  inter- 
ruption to  his  indolent  peace  and  quiet,  and  the  other  would 
dread  the  contagion  of  doctrines  conflicting  with  his  favourite 
solifidian  hobby.  While,  however,  the  Church  is  recog- 
nized by  both,  and  its  itinerant  preachers'  mission  does  not 
warrant  any  course  which  is  calculated  to  withdraw  the 
people  from  the  parish  temple,  no  one,  except  the  resident 
clergy  themselves,  would   be   inconvenienced.  *  And   how 

*  "  The  Reformation,"  p.  128. 

t  The  public  are  familiar  with  this  cant  term  in  the  mouths  of  Erastian  bishops 
and  indolent  priests,  applied  to  the  judicious  restoration  of  rubrical  conformity 
which  their  more  faithful  and  conscientious  colleagues  are  aiming  to  effect 


ORTHODOX    DIVINES.  301 

many  a  parish  would  thus  be  awakened  through  such  in- 
stilment ality  from  its  sleep  of  practical  infidelity  and  indif- 
ference on  the  one  hand,  and  of  self-righteous  inaction  on 
the  other. 

Of  these  two  classes,  happily,  but  few  representatives 
are  found  in  the  American  Church.  There  is  a  very  small 
and  very  feeble  minority  of  evangelicals  among  the  clergy, 
and  of  the  old  orthodox—"  the  high  and  dry"  as  Bishop 
Whittingham  calls  them— there  is  only  here  and  there  a 
surviving  representative.*  A  gratifying  proof  of  this  was 
afforded  in  the  General  Convention  held  in  Philadelphia 
last  October,  (which  I  attended)  when  a  counter  '  Resolu- 
tion' to  one  submitted  to  that  body,  deprecatory  of  "  cer- 
tain writings  emanating  chiefly  from  members  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Oxford  in  England"  was  carried  by  a  full  convo- 
cation ;  only  two  clerical  and  three  lay  votes  being  given 
in  the  negative. 

And  yet  the  laity  of  the  American  Church  understand 
their  rights  as  well,  perhaps,  as  the  wiseacres  of  Totten- 
ham and  Ware. 

*  "  Yorick's"  description  of  this  class  is  a  just  portraiture !— "  They  have  com- 
fortable livings,  backed  commonly  by  snug  private  fortunes ;  they  give  exem- 
plary dinners;  pay  visits  in  roomy  chariots  with  fat  wives,  fat  horses,  fat  coach- 
men ;  they  are  condescending  to  curates ;  in  speech  rather  weighty  (not  to  say 
authoritative)  than  verbose— if  the  latter,  prosy ;  they  transcribe  their  divinity  from 
Stanhope,  Claxton,  and  Pyle;  Tillotson  is  the  ultima  TWe  of  their  theology  ; 
beyond  this  period  their  church  is  in  nubibus.  They  call  the  Church  "  the 
Establishment" ;  in  rubrical  observance  they  follow  their  fathers  (literally)  to 
return  to  the  practice  of  their  grandfathers  they  consider  dangerous  "innova- 
tions;" some,  indeed,  preach  in  a  surplice,  but  that  is  from  laziness,  for  the  spe- 
cies delights  especially  in  the  rustle  of  silk  gowns  with  hugh  pudding  sleeves ; 
dissent  angers  them,  but  popery  terrifies ;  and  they  would  as  soon  put  on  the 
shirt  of  Nessus  as  the  name  of  Catholic;  their  high  Church  principle  may  be 
supposed  to  have  some  connexion  with  ideas  of  high  place,  high  life,  and  high 
living."  And  he  adds  with  equal  justice,  "Really,  if  the  Church  is  to  wait 
upon  these  ponderous  divines,  she  might  just  as  well  turn  round  for  another 
long  sleep,  duller  'than  the  fat  weed  that  roots  itself  in  ease  on  Lethe's  wharf.'" 


302        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

On  Sunday,  March  21st,  I  heard  Mr.  Van  Pelt  preach 
after  the  morning  service  in  St.  Mark's  church  in  Ninth 
Street.  The  preacher  and  his  subject  much  interested  me, 
and  I  only  regretted  the  smallness  of  the  attendance,  it 
being  the  poorest  congregation  I  have  seen  in  this  city. 
Mr.  Van  Pelt  supplied  the  altar  on  behalf  of  the  rector, 
who  was  absent  from  town  ;  the  building  deserves  no  par- 
ticular notice.  The  same  evening  the  bishop  of  the  diocess 
preached  in  St.  Paul's,  when  the  rite  of  confirmation  was 
administered  to  a  large  number.  This  parish  under  the 
care  of  the  Rev.  Richard  Newton,  before  referred  to,  is  one 
of  the  oldest  in  the  city.  The  building  is  large  and  conve- 
niently constructed,  and  like  St.  Stephen's  and  St.  Peter's 
without  that  glare  from  a  superabundance  of  white  and 
red  which  too  many  of  the  Philadelphia  churches  reflect. 
It  is  some  relief  to  worship  in  a  church  which  does  not 
bear  marks  of  being  scarcely  dry  from  the  never  ceasing 
operations  of  painter  and  whitewashes  But  such  a  luxury 
is  short  lived  in  Philadelphia.  People  in  that  city  treat 
their  churches  and  meeting  houses  like  grown  up  children, 
who  have  no  sooner  well  looked  at  a  toy  and  got  accus- 
tomed to  it,  than  it  must  be  thrown  aside  for  another. 

The  same  remark  will  apply  to  the  private  houses  in 
Philadelphia.  Next  to  the  quakerly  uniformity  which  is 
observable  in  their  architecture  and  internal  appointments, 
the  most  wearisome  feature  to  a  stranger's  eye  is  the  aspect 
of  neivness  which  is  every  where,  and  in  every  thing,  ob- 
servable. An  old  house,  like  an  old  coat,  is  regarded  by 
the  spruce  Philadelphians  as  unfit  to  be  seen  by  company. 
Northumberland  House  would  be  condemned  (like  a  crazy 
ship)  by  the  city  authorities,  and  converted  into  a  charitable 
asylum  or  a  jail — and  St.  James's  palace  would  be  present- 
ed, as  an  unsightly  nuisance.  The  bricks  and  mortar 
fronts   of  the  citizens'  dwellings  are,  therefore,   not  less 


SAIL    FOR    LIVERPOOL.  303 

bright  and  fresh  to  the  eye  than  the  paint  and  paper  with- 
in— the  latter  being  generally  preferred,  as  being,  though 
less  costly,  more  easily  renewed ; — and  the  constant  re- 
placing of  new  furniture,  carpets,  etc.,  for  old  (i.  e.  two 
years  or  so  in  use,)  gives  to  each  house  the  genuine  appear- 
ance of  an  upholsterer's  show  rooms.  The  vulgarity  of 
this  taste  is  relieved,  I  admit,  by  a  few,  though  a  very  few 
exceptions,  among  the  older  families. 

On  Monday,  29th  of  March,  we  left  Philadelphia  for 
New  York,  whence  we  sailed  in  the  good  packet  ship  Eu- 
rope for  Liverpool  on  the  following  Thursday.*     After  a 

*THE  AUTHOR'S  LOG 

Our  good  ship  "  Europe,"  Edward  G.  Marshall  commander,  left  the  wharf 
in  tow  of  the  steamer  "  Sampson"  on  the  first  of  April,  at  half-past  two  o'clock 
a.m. ;  discharged  her  pilot  at  4.  Land  soon  out  of  sight  before  a  fresh  breeze 
from  W.N.W. 

Second  day.  The  wind  which  had  hauled  to  the  south  during  the  night  con- 
tinued in  that  quarter  till  the  afternoon,  when  it  changed  to  S.S.E. ;  the  night 
is  very  fine. — Lat  40.  15.     Lon.  74.  15. 

Third  day.  Wind  varied  from  S.W.  to  N.W.,  blowing  strong.  After  dark 
there  was  a  thunder-storm  with  vivid  lightning — topsail  reefed. 

Fourth  day  (Sunday).  Wind  blew  all  day  from  the  N.W.  Weather  very 
fine — all  sails  set.     Too  indisposed  to  do  duty. 

Fifth  day.  Wind  from  S.  to  S.S.E.  blowing  a  heavy  gale;  top  sails  closely 
reefed,  and  the  fore  sail  taken  in. 

Sixth  day.  Wind  continued  south  till  4  p.m.  when  it  suddenly  hauled  to 
the  west,  and  the  ship  pitched  into  a  heavy  sea,  which  carried  away  her  jib- 
booms,  bowsprit,  cap,  etc. — all  which  were  lost;  the  straining  of  the  vessel  ex- 
cessive ! 

Seventh  day.  The  storm  has  subsided  ;  wind  in  the  N.W.  A  calm  succeeded 
towards  noon;  in  the  evening  rain  fell,  and  the  weather  has  become  squally. 

Eiglith  day.  The  night  was  calmer.  In  the  morning  a  strong  wind  sprung 
up  from  the  south,  which  continued  through  the  day.  We  have  reached  Lat. 
41.  23.     Lon.  50.  25. 

Ninth  day.  Wind  blew  heavy  from  S.  to  S.S.W.  with  a  high  sea;  constant 
pitching ;  a  great  deal  of  water  shipped  ;  about  noon  the  wind  changed  suddenly 
to  N.N.W. 

Tenth  day.    Wind  has  blown  strong  from  the  north  all  day. 


304  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

visit  to  the  paternal  home,  we  spent  the  rest  of  the  time  in 
London.  Thence  we  sailed  on  the  19th  of  June,  in  the 
packet  ship  St.  James,  and  reached  New  York  on  the  29th 
of  July.  Fortunate  was  it  that  we  were  no  later  in  our 
English  visit,  as  the  first  letter  after  our  return  to  America, 
brought  the  mournful  intelligence  of  the  decease  of  a  moth- 
er, and  the  other  parent  survived  her  only  a  few  weeks. 

Eleventh  day — (Easter  Sunday).  Weather  fine  this  day,  though  strong 
breezes  blew  from  S.S.W.  The  "  Queen  of  Festivals"  was  celebrated  by  public 
worship  in  the  cabin,  when  I  said  prayers  and  delivered  a  short  exhortation 
suitable  to  the  occasion.  The  captain  and  several  of  the  crew  used  prayer  books, 
and  all  were  deeply  attentive. 

Twelfth  day.  The  wind  blew  from  S.  W.  all  this  day :  all  studding  sails 
set. 

Thirteenth  day.  Wind  continued  in  the  same  quarter;  we  are  making  good 
progress. 

Fourteenth  day.     The  wind  suddenly  hauled  to  the  north,  and  died  calm. 

Fifteenth  day.  A  dead  calm  all  night ;  day  rainy;  wind  from  the  N.W.  We 
have  reached  Lat.  47.  29.     Lon.  21.  13. 

Sixteenth  day.  Strong  breezes  from  the  N.  W. ;  top  sails  reefed;  night  very 
fine. 

Seventeenth  day.  Wind  still  from  the  N.W. ;  raining  heavily,  with  strong 
breezes. 

Eighteenth  day  (Sunday).  The  grateful  sound  of  "  land"  was  the  first  that 
greeted  my  ear  this  morning.  On  reaching  the  deck  our  eyes  were  cheered  by 
the  view  of  Cape  Clear. 

Nineteenth  day.  Occupied  in  making  our  way  up  the  Irish  Sea ;  in  the  even- 
ing the  pilot  came  on  board. 

Twentieth  day.     Landed  at  Liverpool  about  10.  a.m. 


CHAPTER  L. 

MINISTERIAL    PREPARATION    IN    THE    UNITED    STATES. 

I  had  put  my  hand  to  the  requisite  canonical  papers  of 
an  old  friend  (and  my  groomsman)  just  before  leaving 
Philadelphia  for  England,  and  a  few  Sundays  after  my  re- 
turn to  the  city  had  the  gratification  of  hearing  him  preach 
in  St.  Stephen's  church.  William  Sydney  Walker  is  the 
editor  of  an  edition  of  the  collected  Latin  poets,  and  was 
for  many  years  private  tutor  in  the  family  of  Mr.  Johnston, 
a  personal  friend  of  George  the  Fourth  when  Regent ; 
Mr.  Johnston's  travels  hi  Russia  are  well  known  to  the  Eng- 
lish public.  He  died  of  pure  grief,  occasioned  by  the  early 
death  of  a  lovely  and  accomplished  daughter  during  a  visit 
to  the  West  Indies  for  her  health,  after  which  as  the  family 
broke  up,  Mr.  "Walker  prosecuted  the  study  of  divinity, 
and  on  the  completion  of  his  term  of  candidateship  was 
admitted  to  orders  by  the  Bishop  of  Pennsylvania.  The 
American  Church  does  not  possess  a  riper  scholar,  or  a 
man  more  thoroughly  read  in  general  and  theological  lit- 
erature. 

The  preparatory  exercises  of  a  candidate  for  holy  orders 
in  the  United  States,  when  fully  carried  out,  are  more  se- 
vere than  in  England  ;  though  the  bishop,  with  the  concur- 
rence of  his  council,  the  Standing  Committee,  possesses 
the  same  power  of  dispensation  with  regard  to  the  higher 
branches  of  learning.  The  indulgence  (as  required  by  cir- 
cumstances) is  more  generally  extended  in  the  western  dio- 
cesess  of  the  country  than  in  the  Atlantic  States.     The  ad- 

20 


306        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

vantage  secured  by  family  influence  and  other  accidents 
are,  also,  pretty  much  the  same  as  in  England,  both  with 
regard  to  examinations  and  titles.*     Mammon  likewise  has 

*  Though  I  may  safely  affirm  that  the  specimen  of  an  examination  by  the 
excellent  Bishop  Douglass  of  Salisbury,  narrated  by  a  worthy  clerical  friend  of 
mine  in  that  diocess,  has  scarcely  yet  found  its  parallel  in  the  United  States; 
and  this  through  the  check  which  the  institution  of  the  "  Standing  Committees" 
have  upon  the  actions  of  American  bishops. 

Bishop  D.  "  Did  I  not  examine  you  a  twelvemonth  ago  for  deacon's  orders, 
Mr.  L.  % " 

Mr.  L.     "  Yes,  my  lord,  you  examined  me  yourself  in  this  room." 

Bishop  D.     "Then  I'll  not  trouble  you  any  further." 

Though  the  candidate  in  this  instance  was  fully  prepared  for  any  canonical 
literary  test,  being  a  scholar,  and  afterwards  an  author  of  some  repute,  yet  the 
cases,  I  am  informed,  were  quite  numerous  in  which  one  of  Bishop  Douglass's 
successors  admitted  dissenting  ministers  to  holy  orders,  after  a  scarcely  severer 
scrutiny.  In  a  volume  on  "  The  present  State  of  the  Church,"  by  the  Rev. 
Charles  Lucas,  is  the  following: — "I  cannot  say  the  number  of  dissenting  min- 
isters admitted  to  holy  orders  by  the  late  Bishop  Burgess;  yet  is  it  not  unjust 
towards  the  clergy  of  the  establishment  who  have  sons  willing  and  qualified  to 
undergo  a  ministerial  examination  and  ordination,  that  if  there  be  an  exception 
to  the  general  rule  of  a  university  degree  they  are  refused  a  trial  of  their  fitness 
because  their  fathers  have  not  been  able  (from  some  imperious  cause)  to  send 
them  to  the  university ;  while  the  dissenting  ministers,  the  moment  that  they 
are  willing  to  conform,  are  admitted ;  and  yet  more  early  is  the  admission  in  the 
case  of  a  popish  priest !  The  qualification  of  one  of  these  dissenting  ministers, 
(I  have  it  from  the  best  authority)  for  the  orders  of  deacon  and  priest  was  of  the 
literary  kind,  most  contemptible.  It  is  proper  for  my  brethren's  sake,  I  should 
state  this.  We,  on  our  part,  have  a  most  memorable  and  hard  case  in  which 
Bishop  Burgess  refused  to  advance  his  own  great  nephew  to  priest's  orders. 
This  gentleman,  the  son  of  an  English  clergyman,  had  devoted  himself  to  the 
Church,  had  acted  as  a  zealous  missionary,  had  been  most  regularly  and  episco- 
pally  inducted  into  [deacon's]  orders  by  an  American  bishop,  who  himself  had 
his  episcopal  consecration  from  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury ;  and  exclusive  of 
all  this,  the  American  Episcopal  Church  is  an  original  flow  from  our  own  pure 
stream, — yet  Dr.  Lushington  (O,  pudor!)  is  referred  to,  and  interprets  the  eccle- 
siastical law  of  England  against  his  admission  into  our  Church.  It  seems  that 
this  true  churchman  suffers  for  his  conformity.  Had  he  entered  the  popish 
priesthood,  there  would  have  been  no  objection  to  him.  While  such  anomalies 
check  our  extra  zeal,  and  narrow  our  usefulness,  they  weaken  the  best  efforts 
of  the  laity."    p.  79. 


CLERICAL    PREPARATION.  307 

the  same  power  in  both  Churches.  It  would  be  unfair  to 
a  large  class  of  talented  and  learned  clergy  not  to  admit 
the  notorious  fact,  that  prominence  of  position  and  the  oc- 
cupancy of  city  parishes  in  the  American  Church  episcopal 
is  no  more  a  criterion  of  talent  or  general  qualification  than 
in  the  Church  of  England  ;  though  it  must  be  admitted 
that  a  higher  standard  exists  in  American  cities  than  the 
patrons  of  London  livings  require,  and  that  several  of  the 
most  talented  among  the  American  clergy  chance  to  be  at 
this  moment  holders  of  city  cures.  It  would  be  no  diffi- 
cult matter  to  point  to  a  score  of  London  preachers  in  the 
establishment  attended  by  good  congregations,  who  would 
not  obtain  half  a  dozen  hearers  in  New  York  or  Phila- 
delphia ;  nor  are  there  more  than  half  a  dozen  London 
clergymen,  if  the  odiousness  of  a  comparison  may  be  per- 
mitted, who  for  elocution  and  pulpit  tact,  can  be  considered 
as  at  all  equal  to  a  fair  proportion  of  the  regular  preachers 
in  the  churches  of  Boston,  New  York,  Philadelphia  and 
Baltimore,  which  are  a  sort  of  metropolises  to  the  several 
sections  of  country  where  they  are  situated.  It  may  be  ar- 
gued that  this  fact  is  creditable  to  the  religious  feeling, 
if  not  to  the  taste  of  the  London  congregations,  who  rightly 
consider  the  mere  act  of  preaching  a  very  secondary  part 
of  the  business  of  the  sanctuary,  and  are  satisfied  with  the 
other  qualities  of  pastoral  diligence,  viz.  aptness  in  private 
oral  instruction,  with  (what  is  admitted  to  be  a  very  essen- 
tial qualification  in  the  spacious  fanes  of  the  English  me- 
tropolis) a  good  voice  for  reading  and  chaunting.  These,  it 
is  true,  are  greater  desideratums  with  a  large  class  of  Church 
people  than  the  mere  art  of  preaching;  but  it  is  equally 
true,  that  with  another  class  constantly  augmenting  by  ac- 
cessions from  the  ranks  of  dissent,  there  is  a  great  and  in- 
creasing passion  for  preaching,  which  the  London  pulpit  at 
present  fails  to  satisfy.     The  passion  may  be  the  result  of 


ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

bad  education  and  love  of  excitement,  but  as  it  exists  it 
should  be  turned  into  a  good  channel.  A  Massillon  in  the 
pulpit  will  never  lessen  the  reverence  of  the  congregation 
for  the  regular  service,  nor  elevate  his  office  of  preaching 
above  that  which  he  fills  at  the  altar. 

I  take  this  opportunity  of  inserting  the  canonical  requi- 
sitions for  deacons  in  the  American  Church,  which  is  made 
fitting  from  the  fact,  honourable  to  my  friend  Walker,  that 
he  passed  the  ordeal  of  the  severest  scrutiny  in  every  arti- 
cle ;  his  examiners  in  the  persons  of  Bishop  Onderdonk  and 
the  standing  committee  of  Pennsylvania  being  reputed  as 
more  stringent  in  their  requisitions  of  literary  qualifications 
than  those  of  any  other  diocess  in  the  United  States. 

CANON  V. 

Of  the  Preparatory  Exercises  of  a  Candidate  for 
Deaco7is>  Orders. 

Section  1.  There  shall  be  assigned  to  every  candidate 
for  deacons'  orders,  three  different  examinations,  at  such 
times  and  places  as  the  bishop  to  whom  he  applies  for  or- 
ders, shall  appoint.  The  examination  shall  take  place  in 
the  presence  of  the  bishop  and  two  or  more  presbyters,  on 
the  following  studies  prescribed  by  the  Canons,  and  by  the 
course  of  study  established  by  the  House  of  Bishops.  At 
the  first  examination,  on  the  Books  of  Scripture ;  the  can- 
didate being  required  to  give  an  account  of  the  different 
books,  and  to  translate  from  the  original  Greek  and  Hebrew, 
and  to  explain  such  passages  as  may  be  proposed  to  him. 
At  the  second  examination  on  the  Evidences  of  Christianity, 
and  Systematic  Divinity.  And  at  the  last  examination,  on 
Church  History,  Ecclesiastical  Polity,  the  Book  of  Common 
Prayer,  and  the  Constitutions  and  Canons  of  the  Church, 


CLERICAL    PREPARATION.  309 

and  of  the  diocess  for  which  he  is  to  be  ordained.  In  the 
choice  of  books  on  the  above  subjects,  the  candidate  is  to 
be  guided  by  the  course  of  study  established  by  the  House 
of  Bishops.  At  each  of  the  forementioned  examinations, 
he  shall  produce  and  read  a  sermon  or  discourse,  composed 
by  himself,  on  some  passage  of  Scripture  previously  as- 
signed him,  which,  together  with  two  other  sermons  or  dis- 
courses, on  some  passages  of  Scripture  selected  by  himself, 
shall  be  submitted  to  the  criticisms  of  the  bishop  and  clergy 
present.  And  before  his  ordination  he  shall  be  required  to 
perform  such  exercises  in  reading,  in  the  presence  of  the 
bishop  and  clergy,  as  may  enable  them  to  give  him  such 
advice  and  instructions  as  may  aid  him  in  performing  the 
service  of  the  Church,  and  in  delivering  his  sermons  with 
propriety  and  devotion. 

Section  2.  The  bishop  may  appoint  some  of  his  presby- 
ters to  conduct  the  above  examinations  ;  and  a  certificate 
from  these  presbyters  that  the  prescribed  examinations  have 
been  held  accordingly,  and  satisfaction  given,  shall  be  re- 
quired of  the  candidate :  Provided,  that  in  this  case,  the 
candidate  shall,  before  his  ordination,  be  examined  by  the 
bishop,  and  two  or  more  presbyters,  on  the  above  named 
studies. 

Section  3.  In  a  diocess  where  there  is  no  bishop,  the 
Standing  Committee  shall  act  in  his  place,  in  appointing 
the  examining  presbyters  required  by  this  canon  ;  and  in 
this  case  the  candidate  shall  be  again  examined  by  the 
bishop  to  whom  he  applies  for  orders,  and  two  or  more  pres- 
byters, on  the  studies  prescribed  by  the  canons. 

Section  4.  A  clergyman  who  presents  a  person  to  the 
bishop  for  orders,  as  specified  in  the  office  of  Ordination, 
without  having  good  grounds  to  believe  that  the  requisi- 
tions of  the  Canons  have  been  complied  with,  shall  be 
liable  to  ecclesiastical  censure." 


310  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

The  following  is  the  course  of  ecclesiastical  studies  re- 
ferred  to  in  the  foregoing  canon : — 

COURSE  OF  ECCLESIASTICAL  STUDIES. 

"In  attending  to  this  subject  a  considerable  difficulty 
occurs,  arising  out  of  the  difference  of  the  circumstances  of 
students,  in  regard  not  only  to  intellectual  endowments  and 
preparatory  knowledge  of  languages  and  science,  but  to  ac- 
cess to  authors,  and  time  to  be  devoted  to  a  preparation 
for  the  ministry.  For,  in  accommodating  to  those  whose 
means  are  slender,  we  are  in  danger  of  derogating  from  the 
importance  of  religious  knowledge  ;  while,  on  the  other 
hand,  although  we  should  demand  all  that  is  desirable,  we 
shall  be  obliged  to  content  ourselves,  in  some  cases,  with 
what  is  barely  necessary. 

"  In  consideration  of  the  above,  it  will  be  expedient  to  set 
down  such  a  course  of  study  as  is  accommodated  to  a 
moderate  portion  of  time  ind  means  ;  and  afterwards  to 
suggest  provision,  as  well  for  a  more  limited,  as  for  a  more 
enlarged  share  of  both. 

"  Let  the  student  be  required  to  begin  with  some  books 
in  proof  of  the  divine  authority  of  Christianity ',  such  as 
Grotius  on  the  Truth  of  the  Christian  Religion  ;  Jenkins 
on  the  Reasonableness  of  Christianity;  Paley's  Evi- 
dences ;  Leslie's  Methods  with  the  Jews  and  Deists  ; 
Stillingfleet's  Origines  Sacra>. ;  and  Butler's  Analogy.  To 
the  above  should  be  added  some  books  which  give  a 
knowledge  of  the  objections  made  by  Deists.  For  this, 
Leland's  View  may  be  sufficient ;  except  that  it  should  be 
followed  by  answers  to  deistical  writers  since  Leland,  whose 
works  and  the  answers  to  them  may  be  supposed  known  to 
the  student.     It  would  be  best,   if  circumstances  permit, 


CLERICAL    PREPARATION.  311 

that   he    should   read    what   the   deists   themselves   have 
written. 

"  After  the  books  in  proof  of  Revelation,  let  the  Student, 
previously  to  the  reading  of  any  system  of  divinity,  study 
the  /Scriptures  with  the  help  of  some  approved  commenta- 
tors, such  as  Patrick  and  Lowth  on  the  Old  Testament. 
and  Hammond,  or  Whitby,  or  Doddridge,  on  the  New; 
being  aware,  in  regard  to  the  last  mentioned  author,  of 
the  points  on  which  he  differs  from  our  Church,  although 
it  be  with  moderation  and  candour.  During  such,  his  study 
of  the  Scriptures,  let  him  read  some  work  or  works  which 
give  an  account  of  the  design  of  the  different  books,  and 
the  grounds  on  which  their  respective  authority  is  assert- 
ed ;  for  instance,  Father  Simon's  Canon  of  Scripture ; 
Collier's  Sacred  Interpreter  ;  Gray's  Key  to  the  Old  Tes- 
tament, and  Percy's  Key  to  the  New.  Let  the  student 
read  the  Scriptures  over  and  over,  referring  to  his  commen- 
tators as  need  may  require,  until  he  can  give  an  account 
of  the  design  and  character  of  each  book,  and  explain 
the  more  difficult  passages  of  it.  He  is  supposed  to  know 
enough  of  profane  History,  to  give  an  account  of  that 
also,  whenever  it  mixes  with  the  sacred.  There  are  cer- 
tain important  subjects  which  may  be  profitably  attended  to, 
as  matters  of  distinct  study,  during  the  course  of  the  gene- 
ral study  of  Scripture.  For  instance :  the  student  having 
proceeded  as  far  as  the  deluge,  may  read  some  author  who 
gives  a  larger  account  than  the  commentators  of  the  par- 
ticulars attached  to  that  crisis  ;  and  also  the  principles  on 
which  are  founded  the  different  systems  of  chronology,  all 
which  will  be  found  clearly  done  in  the  Universal  History. 
In  reading  the  book  of  Leviticus,  it  will  be  useful  to  attend 
to  some  connected  scheme  of  the  Sacrifices  ;  such  as  is  ex- 
hibited by  Bishop  Kidder,  in  his  Introduction  to  the  Penta- 
teuch, and  by  Mr.  Joseph  Mede  in  some  of  his  discourses. 


312        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

A  more  full  and  interesting  interpretation  of  the  Prophecies 
than  can  be  expected  from  the  commentators,  will  be  de- 
sirable, and  for  this  purpose  let  Bishop  Newton's  work  be 
taken. — Between  the  study  of  the  Old  Testament  and 
that  of  the  New,  should  be  read  Prideaux's  and  Shuck- 
ford's  Connections.  With  the  New  Testament  should  be 
taken  some  book  relating  to  the  Harmony  of  the  Gospels, 
as  McKnight's  or  Bishop  Newcome's.  Let  the  student  be- 
fore entering  on  the  Gospels,  read  Dr.  Campbell's  Intro- 
ductory Dissertations.  Toward  the  close  of  the  Gospels 
the  subject  of  the  Resurrection  should  be  particularly  at- 
tended to  ;  for  which  purpose,  let  there  be  taken  either  Mr. 
West  on  the  subject,  or  Bishop  Sherlock's  Trial  of  the 
Witnesses. 

"  After  the  study  of  the  Scriptures,  let  attention  be  given 
to  Ecclesiastical  History,  so  far  as  to  the  Council  of  Nice. 
This  period  is  distinctly  taken,  from  a  desire  that  the  por- 
tion of  history  preceding  it,  as  well  as  the  opinions  then 
entertained,  may  be  learned  from  original  writers,  which 
may  be  considered  as  one  of  the  best  expedients  for  the 
guarding  of  the  student  against  many  errors  of  modem 
times.  The  writers  of  that  interval  are  not  numerous  or 
bulky.  Eusebius  is  soon  read  through ;  and  so  are  the 
Apostolic  Fathers.  Even  the  other  writers  are  not  volumi- 
nous, except  Origen,  the  greater  part  of  whose  works  may 
be  passed  over.  The  Apostolic  Fathers  may  be  best  read 
in  Cotelerius'  edition ;  but  there  are  translations  of  most  of 
them,  by  Archbishop  Wake  and  the  Rev.  William  Reeves. 
— Cave's  Lives  of  the  Apostles  and  Fathers  may  be  profit- 
ably read  at  this  period. 

"  This  stage  of  the  student's  progress  seems  most  proper 
for  the  study  of  the  two  questions,  of  our  Lord's  Divinity, 
and  of  episcopacy.  The  aspect  of  early  works  on  these 
subjects,  best  enables  us  to  ascertain  in  what  shape  they 


CLERICAL    PREPARATION.  313 

appear  to  the  respective  writers.  And  it  is  difficult  to  sup- 
pose, on  the  ground  of  what  we  know  of  human  nature, 
that  during  the  first  three  centuries,  either  the  character 
of  Christ  should  have  been  conceived  of  as  materially 
different  from  what  had  been  the  representation  of  it  by  the 
first  teachers  of  our  religions ;  or,  that  there  should  have 
been  a  material  change  of  Church  Government,  without 
opposition  to  the  innovation.  For  the  former  question,  let 
the  works  of  Bishop  Bull  and  the  Rev.  Charles  Leslie  be 
taken,  to  which  may  well  be  added  the  late  controversy 
between  Bishop  Horsley  and  Dr.  Priestly ;  and  for  the  lat- 
ter, Mr.  Hooker's  Ecclesiastical  Polity,  Archbishop  Potter 
on  Church  Government,  and  Daubeny's  Guide  to  the 
Church.  As  the  Lord  Chancellor  King  published  a  book 
on  the  Discipline  of  the  Primitive  Church,  in  which  he 
has  rested  episcopacy  on  insufficient  grounds  unwarily  ad- 
mitted by  many  on  his  authority — let  the  student  read  his 
book,  and  the  refutation  of  it  in  Mr.  Slater's  Original  Draft 
of  the  Primitive  Church. 

u  After  this,  let  the  student  go  on  with  the  history  of  the 
fourth  century,  from  Mosheim.  But  it  will  be  of  advan- 
tage to  him  to  turn  to  Fleury's  History,  for  the  epitomes 
there  given  of  the  writings  of  the  eminent  men  who  abound- 
ed in  that  century  and  part  of  the  next.  Let  him  then  re- 
turn to  Mosheim,  and  go  on  with  that  writer  to  the  Refor- 
mation. Here  let  him  pause  and  study  as  the  main  hinges 
of  popery,  its  pretences  to  supremacy,  and  infallibility,  on 
which  there  will  be  found  satisfactory  matter  in  Mr.  Chil- 
lingworth's  Religion  of  Protestants  a  safe  Way  to  Sal- 
vation, and  Dr.  Barrow's  Treatise  of  the  Pope's  Suprem- 
acy. Here  also  let  there  be  read  Father  Paul's  History  of 
the  Council  of  Trent.  Then  let  the  student  resume  Mo- 
sheim. But  it  will  be  best,  if,  for  a  more  minute  knowl- 
edge of  the  History  of  the  Church  of  England^  since  the 


314  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

Reformation,  he  take  along-  with  him  Collier's  History — a 
very  able  work,  but  in  the  reading  of  which  some  allow- 
ance must  be  made  for  peculiar  prejudices.  On  coming',  in 
the  reign  of  Elizabeth,  to  the  questions  which  arose  between 
the  divines  of  the  Established  Church  and  the  presbyte- 
rians,  then  known  by  the  name  of  puritans,  let  recourse 
be  again  had  to  Mr.  Hooker's  work,  and  to  the  London 
Cases.     Then  let  Mosheim  be  proceeded  with  to  the  end. 

"  After  these  studies,  and  not  before,  let  Divinity  be  read 
in  a  systematic  method.  Bishop  Pearson's  Exposition  of 
the  Creed  may  be  considered  as  a  small  system,  and,  on 
account  of  the  excellence  of  the  work,  is  recommended  ;  as 
also,  Bishop  Burnet's  Exposition  of  the  Thirty-nine  Ar- 
ticles. Then  let  a  larger  system  be  taken  ;  suppose  Stack- 
house's  Body  of  Divinity,  with  the  addition  of  the  follow- 
ing modern  works :  Elements  of  Christian  Theology,  by 
the  present  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  and  The  Scholar  Armed. 
That  many  works  of  this  sort  are  not  mentioned,  is  because 
we  think  their  utility  is  principally  confined  to  arrange- 
ment, and  suppose  that  the  knowledge  they  convey  is  to 
be  obtained  from  the  Scriptures,  and  judicious  commen- 
tators." 

It  seems  necessary  to  this  course  of  study  to  recommend 
the  Sermons  of  some  of  the  distinguished  preachers,  who 
have  so  abounded  in  the  Church  of  England  for  some  ages 
past ;  and  the  only  matter  will  be,  from  among  many  of 
great  name,  to  select  a  convenient  number. 

"  It  seems  unnecessary  to  require  attention  to  the  history 
of  the  Common  Prayer,  the  grounds  on  which  the  differ- 
ent services  are  constructed,  and  the  meaning  of  the  Ru- 
brics. Perhaps  a  careful  study  of  Dr.  Wheatty  on  the 
Common  Prayer,  and  the  late  work  of  Mr.  Reeves  will  be 
sufficient. 

Some  books  should  be  read  on  the  Duties  of  the  Pas- 


CLERICAL    PREPARATION.  315 

toral  Office ;  such  as  St.  Chrysostom  on  the  Priesthood, 
Bishop  Burnet  on  the  Pastoral  Care,  and  Bishop  Wilson's 
Parochialia.  It  is,  however,  to  be  remembered  that  one 
reason  for  studying  carefully  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer, 
and  its  Rubrics  is,  that  by  the  help  of  these,  in  connection 
with  what  belongs  in  Scripture  to  the  Ministerial  character, 
sufficient  information  of  its  duties  may  be  had. 

"A  knowledge  of  the  Constitution  and  the  Canons 
should  be  held  absolutely  necessary.  And  it  is  to  be  hoped 
that  they  will  on  this  account  be  soon  published  detached 
from  the  journals. 

"  To  set  down  what  books  shall  be  essential,  no  student 
to  be  ordained  without  being  fully  prepared  to  answer  on 
them,  is  more  difficult.  The  lowest  requisition  is  as  fol- 
lows : — Paley's  Evidences ;  Mosheim  with  a  reference  to 
Mr.  Hooker  for  the  Episcopacy ;  Stackhouse's  Body  of 
Divinity,  and  Mr.  Reeves  on  the  Common  Prayer ;  the 
Constitution  and  Canons  of  the  Church  ;  allowing  in  the 
study  of  the  Scriptures,  a  latitude  of  choice  among  ap- 
proved Commentators  :  it  being  understood  that  if  the  stu- 
dent cannot,  on  the  ground  contained  in  some  good  com- 
mentary give  an  account  of  the  different  books,  and  ex- 
plain such  passages  as  may  be  proposed  to  him,  this  is  of 
itself  a  disqualification. 

"  During  the  whole  course  of  study,  the  student  will  en- 
deavour by  the  grace  of  God,  to  cultivate  his  heart  by  at- 
tention to  devotional  and  practical  treatises." 

This  course  of  studies  was  established  by  the  House  of 
Bishops  in  1804,  and  usually  occupies  a  student  three  years. 
It  is  that  which,  with  such  substitutions  as  are  preferred  by 
the  tutor,  is  followed  by  private  students  of  theology,  and 
ministers  from  dissenting  denominations  who  enter  the 
Church.  The  latter  are  considered  as  "  candidates,"  and 
read  English  theology  for  at  least  six  months,  when  they 


316        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

are  eligible  to  orders  on  meeting  the  usual  examination  for 
deacons  ;  the  period  of  time  during  which  they  were  them- 
selves students  in  such  denomination,  added  to  this  period 
of  six  months,  being  allowed  to  make  up  the  canonical  re- 
quisition of  three  years'  candidateship.  In  such  cases  the 
course  of  study  is  necessarily  abridged,  though  the  order  is 
observed.  To  instance  a  case  within  my  own  knowledge : 
two  books  only  on  the  evidences  of  Christianity  (Paley  and 
Mcllvaine)  were  read,  with  the  "  Analogy."  0' Doyle 
and  Mant,  McKnight  on  the  Epistles,  with  ErnestiUs  In- 
terpretations were  the  only  companions  in  studying  the 
Scriptures ;  a  smaller  Church  History  was  substituted  for 
Mosheim ;  Hooker's  Ecclesiastical  Polity,  and  Bishop 
Hopkirts  "  Primitive  Church"  were  the  only  books  read 
on  the  Church ;  and  in  the  divinity  course  the  same  stu- 
dent read  Pearson  on  the  Creed,  Burnet  on  the  Articles, 
and  the  Sermons  of  Bishops  Seabury  and  Griswold.  Time 
would  not  allow  of  a  more  extended  course,  and  the  candi- 
date had  already  studied  divinity  systematically  ; — but  it 
may  fairly  be  questioned  whether  a  very  large  proportion 
of  the  English  clergy  have  given  more  than  a  cursory 
glance  at  the  leading  standards  in  the  foregoing  list,  while 
not  a  few  have  confined  their  reading  to  Paley. 


CHAPTER  LI. 


THE    RUBRIC. 


Habit  with  him  was  all  the  test  of  truth  ; 
"  It  must  be  right:  I've  done  it  from  my  youth." 
Questions  he  answered  in  as  brief  a  way ; 
"  It  must  be  wrong — it  was  of  yesterday." 

Crabbe. 

On  Sunday  the  25th  of  September  I  attended  the  morn 
ing  service  of  St.  John's  church,  in  a  part  of  Philadelphia 
called  the  Northern  Liberties.  Like  London,  the  city- 
proper  comprehends  only  a  limited  district,  beyond  which 
houses  have  extended,  and  now  take  in  several  adjoining 
villages.  The  Northern  Liberties  is  one  of  the  out  districts, 
holding  much  the  same  relation  to  its  progenitor  as  Isling- 
ton to  the  city  of  London. 

The  church  of  St.  John  is  a  cumbrous  piece  of  build- 
ing. In  its  interior  the  churchwardens  have,  however, 
shown  their  good  taste  as  well  as  their  good  sense  and 
intelligence  by  excluding  the  useless  reading  desk.  The 
whole  sacrifice  of  prayer  and  praise  was  offered  from  the 
Altar. 

The  laxity  of  the  English  bishops  in  enforcing  the  rubrical 
law,  and  permitting  the  gross  inconsistences  of  costume  and 
ritual  observances  which  our  churches  exhibit  to  become  by 
long  usage  familiarised  to  the  public  eye,  and  consequently 
regarded  by  vulgar  ignorance,  as  essential  parts  and  fea- 
tures of  "  a  protestant  Church,"  is  now  felt  in  the  American 
communion,  and  has  already  produced  much  dissension  in 


318  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

certain  local  districts.  The  inconsistency  of  practice  in  the 
mother  Church  with  the  written  canon  and  rubric  law  in- 
duced the  framers  of  the  American  canons  to  omit  any 
legislation  on  the  subject  of  chancels  and  vestments.  What 
is  the  result?  Clergymen  and  churchwardens  have  felt 
themselves  at  full  liberty  to  transform,  "  modernise,"  and 
metamorphose  their  churches  to  such  an  extent  that  scarce- 
ly two  can  be  found  similar  in  design,  and  scarcely  one 
which  bears  any  resemblance  to  a  primitive  model.  Some 
look  like  drawing  rooms,  others  like  music  saloons,  more 
like  methodist  meeting  houses,  and  several  bear  a  close 
resemblance  to  a  theatre,  which  appearance  is  aided  by  the 
prevalence  of  bright  colours,  tinsel  and  glare.  A  stranger 
to  church  forms  stares  to  see  an  officiating  minister  make 
three  distinct  exits  and  entrances,  transformed  on  each  oc- 
casion from  black  to  white,  or  white  to  black  ;  and  inward- 
ly asks  himself  whether  a  change  of  dress,  and  the  pom- 
posity of  six  journeys  to  and  fro,*  are  amongst  the  essen- 


*  To  the  incredulous,  who,  instead  of  using  their  own  eyes  and  ears  in  this  ru- 
brical strife,  take  for  granted  the  slanderous  calumny  of  infidel  editors,  and  dis- 
honest party  churchmen,  that  the  conformist  clergy  seek  to  multiply  "  forms  and 
ceremonies,"  and  who,  perhaps,  almost  start  at  the  above  picture  of  frivolous, 
and  worse  than  popish,  (because  meaningless)  parade,  the  regular  journeys  and 
changes  of  an  anti-"  innovating"  clergyman  on  each  sacrament  day  are  sub- 
joined. Were  such  follies  even  sanctioned  by  law,  and  the  more  than  partial 
usage  of  a  century  and  a  half  only,  no  lover  of  a  simple  and  protestant  framed 
ritual  could  object  to  their  abandonment,  especially  on  the  grounds  stated  by 
the  Bishop  of  London : 

"  First  from  the  vestry  to  his  pew  in  the  black  gown ;  secondly  (at  the  end 
of  the  Litany)  from  his  pew  to  the  vestry,  to  put  off  the  gown,  and  put  on  the 
surplice ;  thirdly  from  the  vestry  to  the  altar  in  the  surplice ;  fourthly,  (at  the 
end  of  the  Nicene  Creed)  from  the  altar  to  the  vestry  to  put  off  the  surplice,  and 
put  on  the  black  gown ;  fifthly,  from  the  vestry  to  the  pulpit  in  the  black  gown ; 
sixthly,  (at  the  end  of  the  sermon,)  from  the  pulpit  to  the  vestry,  to  put  off  the 
black  gown,  and  put  on  the  surplice ;  seventhly,  (when  the  Communion  is  over) 
from  the  altar  to  the  vestry-room,  to  put  off  the  surplice,  when  the  black  gown 


THE    RUBRIC.  319 

tial  features  of  "  the  true  Church  ;"  and  whether  a  liturgical 
form  of  worship  requires  the  use  of  three  or  more  places  at 
which  to  perform  the  ordinary  duties  of  prayer  and  oral  in- 
struction? 

The  evil  of  this  neglect  on  the  part  of  the  Church  law 
makers  in  the  United  States  is  beginning  to  be  felt  and  ad- 
mitted, notwithstanding  that  some  affect  to  treat  the  matter 
with  contempt,  as  unworthy  of  serious  consideration.  It  is 
felt,  particularly  by  the  laity,  that  if  uniformity  in  the 
words  of  the  public  worship  is  a  desirable  object,  the  same 
uniformity  should  pervade  the  internal  structure  of  churches 
as  to  their  main  features.  Taste  and  means  may  regulate 
the  dimensions,  height,  and  costliness  of  the  altars,  but 
their  restoration  to  the  spots  whence  they  have  been  in 
many  churches  sacrilegiously  torn  down,  and  the  nature  of 
the  furniture  and  decorations  belonging  to  them,  should  be 
placed  beyond  the  caprice  or  idle  whims  of  rectors  and 
churchwardens,  or,  as  frequently  happens,  female  commit- 
tees, whose  knowledge  of  ecclesiastical  proprieties  is  usually 
very  profound.  The  late  Bishop  of  Pennsylvania  strongly 
recommended  the  entire  rejection  of  the  reading  desk,  on 
the  ground  of  its  manifest  uselessness,  and  the  gain  effected 
in  additional  room,  and  the  Bishop  of  New  Jersey  wishes 
to  abolish  both  in  the  smaller  churches  and  chapels,  con- 
fining the  whole  of  the  devotional  part  of  the  service  to  its 
proper  place,  the  altar,  and  using  the  eagle  or  moveable 
Bible  stand,  from  which  the  Proper  Lessons  are  read,  for 
the  sermon,  homily  or  exhortation.*     The  practice  of  the 

is  again  resumed  to  walk  home  in,  rejoicing  in  anti-"  Puseyite"  simplicity,  and 
despising  "Puseyite  pomp." — English  Churchman. 

*  "  For  what  does  the  pulpit  in  most  of  our  churches  serve  but  to  set  the 
preacher  to  the  greatest  disadvantage  with  the  people  over  whose  head  he  is 
elevated  1  For  what  is  a  pulpit  needed  more  than  a  desk  I  Why  not  remove 
the  Holy  Table  back  (again)  and  set  it  up  a  step  or  two  on  a  board  platform, 
with  the  chancel  space  before  if?     Then,  as  the  prayers  ar-j  offered  from  the 


320  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

latter  prelate  is  to  deliver  the  sermon  or  exposition  imme- 
diately after  the  Gospel,  (the  Nicene  Creed  being  thrown 
out  in  this  place  in  the  American  Prayer  Book,)  and  then 
to  proceed  to  the  Offertory  as  the  English  rubric  enjoins. 
This  course,  especially  when  no  metrical  hymn  or  anthem 
is  sung  before  and  after  the  sermon,  does  not  allow  of  any 
change  of  dress,  which  the  rubric  preceding  the  Offertory 
implicitly  forbids,  the  Prayer  Book  no  where  sanctions,  and 
the  custom  of  the  Church  immediately  after  the  Reforma- 
tion, stamps  as  anti  "  protestant."  By  Bishop  Doane's  plan, 
which  is  similar  to  the  Bishop  of  London's,  of  which,  in- 
deed, it  had  the  precedency  (being,  in  fact,  nothing  more 
than  a  return  to  the  practice  of  our  fathers)  the  full  service 
is  seen  in  its  beauty  and  simplicity,  as  designed  by  the 
framers  of  our  ritual,  and  as  the  primitive  Christians  beheld 
it.  Surely  ignorance  the  most  unpardonable  of  the  inten- 
tion and  history  of  ecclesiastical  ceremonies  and  vestments, 
or  a  most  factious  spirit  of  opposition  against  constituted 
authorities,  would  object  to  a  return  to  the  decent  practice 
of  the  English  Church  when  first  reformed,  which  is  like- 
wise in  close  conformity  to  the  order  of  the  primitive — ante- 
cedent be  it  remembered  to  the  days  of  popery — especially 
when  that  return  ensures  greater  simplicity,  and  less 
display  than  the  practice  long  in  vogue,  though  at  no  period 
sanctioned  in  the  cathedral  worship.  Our  sublime  service, 
in  itself  complete,  is  broken  in  upon  by  the  use  of  two 

altar  why  not  let  the  sermon  or  exhortation  be  delivered  from  the  reading  stand 
at  which  the  lessons  are  read!  Why  should  the  human  exposition  be  elevated 
above  the  word  of  God  1  Why  should  that  which  should  be  simple,  familiar, 
pastoral,  parental,  be  forced  into  formality  by  the  position  of  the  speaker. 
Would  there  not  in  such  an  arrangement  be  less  of  declamation,  and  more  of 
exposition  ;  less  exhibition  of  the  man,  more  of  the  message  which  he  brings  1 
*  *  *  In  our  smaller  churches,  where  room  for  the  chancel  is  with  so 
much  difficulty  obtained,  the  plan  may  be  adopted  to  the  very  best  advantage." 
— Conventional  address  1840. 


THE    RUBRIC.  321 

metrical  hymns,  set  to  jig  tunes,  for  the  sole  purpose  of  en- 
abling the  officiating  priest  to  robe  himself  in  his  university 
habit ;  which  if  he  be  a  graduate  is  a  piece  of  ill-timed  dis- 
play on  such  an  occasion,  and  if  not  is  a  positive  cheat. 
Why  should  the  work  of  the  ritualists  of  the  Reformation 
be  marred,  and  the  devotion  of  the  Faithful  be  disturbed, 
and  the  attention  of  all  be  diverted  from  its  proper  object, 
by  the  addition  or  introduction  of  two  or  more  modern 
hymns,  set  to  modern  tunes,  and  the  treble  exit  and  re- 
appearance of  Mr.  priest  to  and  from  his  frippery,  for  the 
sake  of  announcing  to  the  gaping  beholders, 

"  Hear  the  words  of  a  doctor  of  canon  law,  graduated  at 
the  famous  University  of ? 

Common  sense,  and  common  propriety  rebel  against  such 
pedantic  and  popish  absurdity  ! 

The  New  Jersey  prelate  did  not  probably  foresee  when 
he  made  his  excellent  suggestion  relative  to  the  pulpit,  the 
opposition  it  has  received  on  the  ground  of  the  reverence 
which  is  said  to  be  felt  for  that  piece  of  furniture  from  long 
association,  and  the  ulterior  aim  which  it  is  asserted  he 
conceals  under  it,  viz — to  banish  preaching  altogether.  To 
both  these  objections  we  may  reply  in  the  Yankee  mode, 
by  asking  the  question — What  is  a  pulpit  ?  A  dictionary 
lying  before  me  defines  it  as  "  The  desk  where  the  sermon 
is  pronounced."  Is  not,  therefore,  the  stand,  eagle,  or  lec- 
turn  supporting  the  Bible,  where  the  lessons  are  read,  as 
much  in  every  conceivable  sense  a  pulpit  as  any  other 
form  of  stand? — If  reverence  is  felt  for  any  particular 
style  or  pattern  of  pulpit,  that  feeling  is  certainly  outraged 
in  the  modern  rostrums  which  are  as  little  like  the  pulpits 
once  in  use,  or  a  "  desk"  (which  the  dictionary  defines  a 
pulpit  to  be)  as  a  reading  stand  or  eagle  is  unlike  the  for- 
mer ;  nay  more  so.  The  octagonal  or  the  six-sided  pulpit, 
the  most  convenient  and   handsome  form,  where,   (as  in 

21 


322        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

most  English  churches)  an  elevated  pulpit  is  needed,  has 
long  since  disappeared  in  the  United  States,  except  from  a 
few  of  the  older  churches ;  and  the  rage  for  something  new 
has  brought  up  a  countless  variety  of  preaching  boxes,  all 
differing1  from  each  other  in  size  and  decorations,  but  main- 
taining  a  wondrous  resemblance  in  their  uniform  ugliness, 
and  the  luxurious  accommodation  afforded  to  the  preacher. 
An  English  friend  of  mine  entering  St.  Andrew's  church, 
Philadelphia,  for  the  first  time,  in  which  one  of  these  arch- 
itectural anomalies  rears  its  cumbrous  and  tasteless  form  in 
the  chancel,  supposed  it  to  be  a  high  altar,  richly  and  gor- 
geously decorated  (which  illusion,  the  candlesticks,  or  lamps 
for  gas-burners  resembling  candlesticks,  at  the  top,  renders 
complete)  till  the  sermon,  when— as  he  was  speculating 
what  place  the  preacher  would  occupy— no  pulpit  (like 
one)  being  in  view,  his  appearance  at  the  summit  of  the 
supposed  altar,  produced  the  strangest  effect  imaginable. 
Several  pulpits  in  which  I  preached  in  the  same  city  form 
a  complete  saloon,  where  the  easy  couch,  the  mellowed 
light,  and  partial  seclusion  invite  to  soft  repose.  In  others 
the  hanging  drapery  and  festooned  canopy  impart  to  them 
the  appearance  of  a  royal  throne.  In  this  particular  our 
American  brethren  might  with  great  advantage  copy  the 
more  becoming  English  examples. 

Another  feature  in  the  externals  of  public  worship  in  the 
American  Church,  claims  a  passing  notice,  viz. — the  music. 
Though  choir  singing  is  better  attended  to  as  a  general 
rule  in  the  United  States  than  in  this  country,  yet  the  want 
of  an  uniform  standard  in  the  style  and  character  of  the 
music,  is  felt  in  the  same  degree  as  by  English  congrega- 
tions. The  love  of  variety  creates  a  constant  change  in 
the  selection  of  chants,  anthems,  and  metre  psalm  tunes ; 
in  which  a  correct  ecclesiastical  taste  is  more  the  exception 


THE    RUBRIC.  .323 

than  the  rule.*  In  the  larger  churches  of  the  city,  how- 
ever, a  laudable  preference  has  latterly  been  manifested  for 
the  Gregorian  tones  ;  which  are  executed  (as  they  are  de- 

*  Since  my  return  to  England  I  have  attended  service  in  the  following 
churches,  and  chapels  of  the  metropolis,  viz :  St.  Mary's,  Lambeth ;  Eaton 
Square  church;  St.  Peter's,  Queen-square ;  St.  John's,  Westminster;  Christ- 
church,  Broadway;  the  Abbey;  St.  Martin's,  Trafalgar  Square;  St.  Gile's; 
the  Temple;  St.  Mark's,  North  Audley-street;  Percy  Chapel;  the  Savoy;  St. 
Andrew's,  Holburn  ;  St.  Anne's,  Soho  ;  St.  George's,  Hanover-square ;  Hano- 
ver, Chapel;  Archbishop Tenison's chapel;  St.  Mary's,  Woolnoth ;  St.  George's, 
Bloomsbury;  All  Souls,  Regent-street;  Margaret  chapel;  St.  Paul's,  Foley- 
place;  St.  Bride's,  Fleet-street;  St.  Pancras,  New-road;  Regent-square  chapel ; 
Christchurch  Albany-street;  Fitzroy  chapel,  London-street;  St.  Marylebone, 
New  Road;  Trinity,  Brompton ;  St.  Paul's,  Knightsbridge ;  Trinity,  Upper 
Chelsea;  the  Normal  School  chapel. 

The  contrast  in  the  manner  of  conducting  the  service,  both  in  the  desk  and 
the  pulpit,  in  several  of  these  places  of  worship  to  the  careless  and  irreverent 
performances  once  exhibited,  affords  a  gratifying  evidence  of  that  spirit  of  im- 
provement which  has  latterly  shown  itself  in  the  public  performances  of  the  na- 
tional clergy.  But  what  a  fearful  falling  off,  all  but  about  half  a  dozen  out  of 
these  thirty-two  London  (!)  churches  present  in  altar  service,  from  what  oar 
national  Church  once  supplied  to  her  children ! !  In  only  four,  besides  the  Ab- 
bey, is  the  catholic  ritual  of  England's  Church  beheld  as  the  Reformers 
moulded  it ;  and  in  these  four,  as  a  natural  consequence,  the  devotion  of  the 
crowded  attendance  of  worshippers,  attests  the  preference  which  the  intelligent 
of  the  English  community  give  to  the  services  of  the  Church  of  England  when 
properly  exhibited,  and  their  excellent  effect — so  exhibited  over  the  minds  of 
the  worshippers.  To  suppose,  indeed,  that  any  community  would  deliberately 
give  the  preference  to  an  ill  executed,  slovenly  performance,  over  one  conducted 
in  the  manner  prescribed  by  its  corn-posers,  is  to  pronounce  that  community  des- 
titute both  of  taste  and  common  sense.  I  may  add,  in  parenthesis,  that  the 
music  at  several  of  the  largest  of  these  churches — little  as  there  is  of  it — is  an- 
other disgrace  to  the  incumbents :  or  to  the  parish  authorities  who  oppose  them- 
selves to  the  wishes  of  the  incumbents,  to  purge  the  ritual  of  innovation,  and 
produce  something  like  an  approach  to  decency  in  the  public  worship  of  Al- 
mighty God;  and  who,  with  the  full  ability  and  materiel  for  conforming  to  the 
model  of  St.  Paul's,  Knightsbridge,  care  so  little  for  their  public  duty  as  to  leave 
the  whole  musical  and  responsive  worship  in  the  unskilled  hands  of  that  worse 
than  superfluous  functionary,  "the  clerk"  and  the  charity  children  (en  masse) 
the  screaming  treble  of  these  loft-y  warblers  in  the  former,  and  their  mechanical 
monotone  in  the  latter,  being  sufficient  to  dissipate  the  devotional  feeling  of  any 


324  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

signed  to  be)  slower  than  in  those  English  churches  where 
they  have  been  introduced ;  though  not  in  the  measured 
and  feeling  strain  that  gives  them  their  beauty  and  effect 
in  the  Latin  Church.  In  only  one  church  in  which  I  have 
worshipped  (in  Maryland)  in  which  the  plain  song  was 
used  for  the  whole  service,  (appointed  to  be  sung)  was  the 
time  observed,  at  all  in  keeping  with  the  character  of  these 
beautiful  tones,  and  the  effect  produced  was  corresponding. 
At  first  pronounced  "  monotonous"  the  congregation  in  this 
instance  soon  became  so  attached  to  the  primitive  metres 
of  Ambrose  and  Gregory  that  the  more  modern  chants,  un- 
less partaking  of  their  character,  proved  distasteful  to  the 
worshippers  and  were  wholly  laid  aside.  "  Who,"  asks  a 
Scotch  writer,  "  that  has  ever  heard  the  music  of  the  Gre- 
gorian chant  in  the  Latin  Church,  can  forget  the  solemnity, 
not  unmixed  with  sadness,  with  which  it  fills  the  soul  of 
the  worshipper?  Whether  intoned  by  devout  priests  con- 
secrated to  God,  or  by  the  artless  voices  of  children  in  the 
sublimest  act  of  Christian  adoration  on  earth,  or  at  the  ves- 
pers of  each  closing  day,  it  seems  ever  to  breathe  holiness 
and  heavenly  peace.  It  is  related  of  many  devout  souls 
now  with  God,  that  they  could  never  hear  the  Mixolydian 
song  of  the  Preface  without  being  melted  in  tears.  Sooth, 
no  tongue  can  be  adequate  to  give  an  idea  of  the  impres- 
sion produced  by  the  plain  song  of  the  choir.     It  is  full  of 

but  the  most  inveterate  "  protestant."  What  a  scandal  is  it  to  the  Church  au- 
thorities, that  the  opera  house  and  the  popish  chapels,  sustained  as  the  latter  are 
for  the  most  part  by  the  voluntary  contributions  of  the  poorest  class  in  the 
community,  should  furnish  better  music  than  our  own  richly  endowed  parish 
churches ! ! ! 

In  the  other  department  of  preaching,  the  names  of  Bennett,  (the  model  of 
a  parish  priest)  Burgess,  Cooper,  Dale,  Dodsworth,  Dukinfield,  Harness,  Ions, 
Montgomery,  Page,  Richards,  Tyler,  and  Villiers,  occupy  (most  deservedly)  too 
high  a  place  in  public  estimation,  to  be  further  raised  by  any  panegyric  in  this 
note. 


THE    RUBRIC.  325 

history,  full  of  sanctity.  While  the  Gregorian  chant  rises, 
you  seem  to  hear  the  whole  Catholic  Church  behind  you 
responding.  It  exhales  a  perfume  of  Christianity,  an  odour 
of  penitence,  and  of  compunction  which  overcome  you. 
No  one  cries  '  How  admirable  !'  but  by  degrees  the  return  of 
those  monotonous  sounds  penetrates  one ;  and,  as  it  were, 
impregnates  the  soul,  without  oners  ever  dreaming  of  judg- 
ing, or  of  appreciating,  or  of  learning  the  airs  which  one 
hears." 

It  must  be  a  source  of  regret  to  every  right  minded  cath- 
olic, both  in  England  and  America,  but  particularly  in  this 
country,  that  the  wretched  practice  of  blending  the  three 
services  of  the  Morning  Prayer,  the  Litany  and  the 
Holy  Communion,  should  have  received  the  sanction  of 
such  general  custom ;  and  the  regret  is  increased  that  a 
practice  so  manifestly  opposed  to  the  intention  of  the  com- 
pilers of  our  liturgy,  and  so  utterly  at  variance  with  the 
spirit  of  their  general  appointments  for  the  public  worship 
of  this  nation,  should  find  advocates  even  among  the 
clergy  !  Is  it  to  accomplish  the  task  of  getting  through  the 
heavy  duty  within  the  allotted  period,  that  the  musical  part, 
where  the  choral  service  is  used,  is  executed  with  such  rail- 
way speed :  destructive  alike  of  religious  enjoyment,  and  in- 
telligent participation  in  the  language  of  those  portions  ?  In 
the  United  States,  the  revisers  of  the  Prayer  Book  have  so 
arranged  the  three  services  when  performed  together,  as  to 
meet  the  difficulty  in  some  degree,  by  avoiding  repetitions, 
and  a  permitted  omission  of  a  portion  of  the  Litany 
[placed  in  parenthesis]  which  permission  clergymen  univer- 
sally avail  themselves  of.  An  increasing  number,  however, 
adopt  the  better  plan  of  celebrating  the  first  two  services  at 
the  (intended)  hour  of  early  morn,  and  offering  the  Euchar- 
istic  sacrifice  at  eleven ;  a  practice  which  has  the  sanction 
of  one  entire  diocess,  where,  at  the  annual  meetings  of  the 


326  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

Convention,  the  clergy  and  laity  attend  matins  before  break- 
fast, and  celebrate  the  Communion  during  the  recess  after 
the  morning's  sitting  for  business. 

The  advantages  of  opening  the  churches  for  several  ser- 
vices during  the  day,  are  so  great  and  so  obvious,  that  ar- 
guments seem  wholly  superfluous  addressed  to   conscien- 
tious  parish   priests,  whose  desire   is  to   do   the   greatest 
amount  of  good  to  the  greatest  number  of  their  flock.     At 
a  time  when  want  of  church-room  is  severely  felt  in  the 
populous  districts  of  the  town  and  country,  how  happens  it 
to  have  been  so  overlooked  that  by  this  mode  the  number 
at  present  accommodated  may  be  trebled,  or  even  (if  there 
are  two  clergymen)  quadrupled?     To  say  nothing  of  the 
advantages  of  affording  servants,  and  persons  from  a  dis- 
tance an  opportunity  of  attending  church  more  than  once, 
and  of  receiving  the  Communion  as  often  as  the  rich ;  (a 
consideration  I  would  press  home  to  the  labour-saving  anti- 
"  Puseyite"  gentlemen,)  the  different  services  could  then  be 
executed  in  a  manner  more  suited  to  their  importance,  pro- 
ducing no  fatigue  to  the  worshippers  ;  and  the  temple  of 
God  would,  by  its  open  porch — its  oft-recurring  tolls  of  in- 
vitation— and   the   acceptable  incense  of   the   sacrifice  of 
prayer  and  praise,  sent  up  with    due    intermissions    from 
morn  till  eve — present  certainly  a   more  fitting   type  and 
emblem  of  the   Temple  above  during  the  eternal  Sabbath, 
than  the  present  wearisome  practice  of  a  compound  triple 
service. 

Part  of  a  communication  which  has  just  come  under 
my  eye,  in  the  columns  of  a  London  Church  journal,  advo- 
cating this  alteration — or  rather  this  return  to  the  ortho- 
dox custom  of  our  ancestors — furnishes  most  completely  all 
the  additional  arguments  in  its  favour  : — 

"  We  would  strongly  urge  the  desirableness  of  offering 
to  the  inhabitants  of  populous  districts,  especially  if  there 


THE    RUBRIC.  327 

be  a  want  of  church  room,  the  opportunity  of  attending 
shorter  services  and  at  a  greater  variety  of  hours  on  Sunday 
mornings  than  they  have  at  present,  in  the  combined  and, 
to  many  persons,  tedious  and  fatiguing  service  of  Morning 
Prayer,  Litany,  and  Communion,  with  a  sermon  of  three 
quarters  of  an  hour,  or  an  hour  long.  Where  there  are 
several  churches  and  a  due  proportion  of  clergy,  this  boon 
might  surely  be  granted,  without  any  difficulty  ;  and  even 
where  there  is  only  one  church,  provided  there  are  two  cler- 
gymen, we  do  not  see  any  insurmountable  difficulty.  It 
would  not  perhaps  be  desirable  to  interfere  much  with  the 
arrangement  of  our  ordinary  Sunday  Morning  services,  but 
we  would  suggest  whether  some  such  plan  as  the  follow- 
ing might  not  be  adopted  : 

"  At  8  the  Order  for  Morning  Prayer. 

"  At  9  the  Litany. 

"  At  10  the  entire  Communion  Office,  including,  of 
course,  the  administration  of  the  Eucharist.  This  Com- 
munion would  be  especially  convenient  for  invalids  and 
others,  for  whom  '  early  Communions'  (at  eight  o'clock)  are 
too  early. 

"At  half-past  11  Morning  Prayer,  (no  Litany)  and  the 
anti-Communion  Office,  with  a  sermon,  but  with  no  ad- 
ministration of  the  Eucharist,  except  on  the  great  festi- 
vals. 

"  In  the  afternoon  there  might  be  the  Evening  Service, 
with  Catechising,  and  in  the  evening,  the  Litany  might,  we 
presume,  be  used,  and  a  sermon  or  lecture  after  it.  [The 
Greater  Litany  was  recommended  by  Bishop  Griswold  as 
forming  on  appropriate  third  service,  before  a  lecture,  when 
a  night  service  is  necessary,  and  so  used  by  Dr.  Vinton  at 
Gracechurch,  Providence.] 

"  To  many  persons,  we  are  aware,  these  suggestions  and 
alterations  will   appear  strange  and   wholly   unnecessary, 


328  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

but,  from  practical  experience,  we  are  convinced  that  some 
such  division  and  shortening  of  our  Sunday  services  would 
be  a  most  welcome  and  valuable  boon  to  invalids,  aged  and 
infirm  persons,  mothers  who  are  nursing  infants,  medical- 
men,  attendants  on  invalids  and  children,  persons  having 
any  particular  physical  infirmity,*  domestic  servants,  and 
young  children,  all  of  whom,  by  our  present  system  of  com- 
bined, unbroken  services,  and  long  sermons,  are  deprived  of 
many  privileges  and  opportunities,  which  the  Church  had 
considerately  and  affectionately  provided  for  them.t     Inva- 

*  "  Long  services  and  long  sermons  not  only  counteract  medical  treatment, 
and  aggravate  disease,  but  send  new  patients  to  the  doctors.  Females  of  sus- 
ceptible and  weak  constitutions  are  especially  liable  to  injury  in  various  ways, 
particularly  by  attendance  at  churches  in  the  evening,  where  an  "  overflowing 
congregation,"  stoves  and  gas-lights  combine  to  render  the  atmosphere  both  in- 
sufferably hot  and  most  unhealthy ;  and  where,  after  listening  to  the  exciting 
harangue  of  a  popular  preacher,  they  emerge  into  the  open  air,  which  is,  by 
comparison,  perfectly  freezing,  we  might  say  killing.  To  this  source,  and  to 
public  meetings,  and  evening  parties,  may,  in  a  great  measure,  be  traced  the 
fearful  increase  of  consumption  in  the  present  day." 

t  "We  feel  it  to  be  too  doubtful  a  point  to  be  introduced  otherwise  than  in  a 
note,  but  we  would  venture  to  suggest  whether  some  consideration  might  not 
also  be  bestowed  upon  those  who  have  really  no  valid  excuse  for  staying  away 
from  church,  or  for  being  wearied  or  annoyed  by  the  length  of  the  services  on 
Sundays.  As  a  fact,  many  persons,  especially  young  men  of  active  habits,  vola- 
tile minds,  and  restless  temperaments,  are  guilty  of  such  conduct ;  and  the  ques- 
tion is,  whether  we  may  treat  them  as  we  would  weak  brethren,  and  make  such 
concessions  as  the  laws  of  the  Church  admit  of,  in  order  to  bring  them  gradu- 
ally to  a  better  state.  Again,  there  are  some  persons  who,  with  more  or  less 
excuse,  occasioyially  take  the  opportunity  of  their  only  weekly  holiday  to  go  and 
see  their  friends  at  a  distance.  On  such  occasions  they  omit  going  to  church, 
because  it  would  so  materially  interfere  with  their  plans,  but  they  might  very 
likely  be  induced  to  attend  an  early  service,  of  short  duration,  and  some  would 
be  heartily  glad  to  do  so.  We  cannot  prevent  persons,  who  are  confined  all  the 
week,  from  making  a  holiday  of  Sunday,  occasionally,  and  therefore  it  is,  we 
think,  worth  while  to  consider  whether  we  should  not  provide  them  with  an 
opportunity  for  public  worship  which  will  leave  the  majority  of  them  without 
excuse  if  they  neglect  it.  We  have  not  much  fear  that  by  so  doing  we  should 
sanction  or  increase  holiday-making  on  Sundays,  while  it  is  certain  that  a  con- 


THE    RUBRIC.  329 

lids  and  aged  persons  are  often  tired  out,  and  their  ailments 
very  seriously  aggravated,  by  long  confinement  in  narrow 
pews,  and  continued  exposure  to  either  extreme  of  heat  or 
cold ;  while  young  children  are  wearied,  and  very  fre- 
quently disgusted,  with  the  monotony  of  remaining  in  one 
narrow  place  for  two  hours,  with  little  that  can  interest 
them,  and  thus  they  become  an  annoyance  to  every  one 
near  them.  When  we  say  this,  we  must  not  be  understood 
to  deprecate  the  value  of  discipline  for  children,  but  we 
question  the  propriety  of  trying  their  patience  unduly  in 
a  place  which  we  wish  them  to  regard  with  reverent 
affection.  They  should  certainly  be  accustomed  gradually 
to  the  services  of  the  Church,  and  not,  as  many  at  present 
have,  at  their  early  attendance,  to  sit  for  two  long  hours 
in  a  strange  place,  where  they  must  neither  move  nor  ask 
a  single  question.  How  often  have  we  pitied  poor  little 
charity-children,  thrust  up  into  the  highest  and  most  distant 
and  dark  corner  of  the  church,  where  they  can  hear  nothing 
but  the  organ,  and  where  they  must,  in  warm  weather,  be 
almost  stifled  with  the  closeness  of  the  atmosphere  ;  with- 
out permission,  and  almost  without  power,  to  move,  during 
two  services,  (one  of  great  length,)  and  two  long  inaudible, 
or  unintelligible,  sermons.  We  can  hardly  wonder,  if  after 
they  leave  school,  they  avoid  a  place  which  must  be  asso- 
ciated in  their  minds  with  irksome  monotony,  and  unre- 
lieved weariness.     Upon  domestic  servants,  a  division  and 

siderable  amount  of  good  would  be  effected.  Then  there  are  others,  who  follow 
their  callings  the  greater  part  of  Sunday,  such  as  cabmen,  omnibus-men,  po- 
licemen, watermen,  barbers,  etc.,  who,  from  their  very  numbers,  are  worth  a 
thought." 

This  suggestion  deserves  a  more  prominent  place  than  that  of  a  note.  But  if 
the  London  clergy  do  not  speedily  second  the  large-minded  plans  of  their  dio- 
cesan, and  (to  use  an  Americanism)  "  walk  up  to  the  work"  before  them,  the 
"  City  Mission  Society"  which  is  practically  a  perfectly  organized  episcopal 
association,  will  be  beforehand  with  them  amongst  this  hitherto  neglected  class. 


330        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

shortening  of  the  services  must  confer  a  most  valuable 
benefit,  as  nearly  all  might  then  go  once,  if  not  twice,  to 
church  on  Sunday,  if  their  employers  were  disposed  to  af- 
ford them  facilities.  Where  there  was  the  daily  service,  say 
Morning  Prayer  at  8,  and  Evening  Prayer  at  7,  there  might 
be  Litany  at  10  or  11,  on  Wednesdays  and  Fridays,  and 
this  latter  would  afford  two  more  opportunities  a  week  for 
the  classes  whose  claims  we  have  been  urging.  We  are 
quite  confident,  that  if  the  plan  we  have  here  suggested 
were  tried,  and  persevered  in,  we  should,  in  time,  obtain 
many  worshippers,  and  those  more  willing,  cheerful,  and 
sincere.  This  would  be  the  most  legitimate,  the  most  im- 
mediate, and  the  most  economical  '  Church  Extension,' 
even  though  an  additional  clergyman  or  two  were  required 
in  large  parishes.  We  are  no  great  admirers  of  novelty  in 
our  public  services,  except  where  novel  obedience  is  substi- 
tuted for  '  old-fashioned'  disobedience,  but  we  cannot  help 
thinking  that  the  novelty,  as  well  as  the  variety  of  this 
arrangement,  would  be  no  undue  or  ill-timed  concession 
to  the  temper  and  spirit  of  the  times.  This  would  not  be 
against  the  law  of  the  Church ;  whereas  concessions  are 
constantly  being  made  in  the  very  teeth  of  her  laws,  and 
in  violation  of  the  consciences  of  the  clergy,  and  the  privi- 
leges of  the  laity." 

With  regard  to  a  distinct  hour  of  service  for  the  Litany, 
recommended  by  this  writer,  it  may  be  remarked  that  it  is 
the  opinion  of  eminent  rubricians,  that  the  word  "  Sundays" 
in  the  rubric  appointing  when  the  longer  Litany  shall  be 
sung,  was  originally  either  a  clerical  or  a  typographical 
error :  that  service  being  peculiarly  a  penitential  supplica- 
tion designed  exclusively  for  Wednesdays  and  Fridays 
(hence  called  "  Litany  days")  and  on  other  fast  days  "when 
it  shall  be  commanded  by  the  ordinary."  On  Sunday,  as  a 
festival,  the   shorter  Litany  in   the    Morning  Prayer  was 


THE    RUBRIC.  33J 

alone  designed  to  be  used  by  tbe  Church.  The  conjecture 
is  more  than  reasonable  ;  and  accords  with  the  opinion  of 
Bishop  Griswold  (expressed  at  the  Convention  of  his  diocess 
during  my  connection  with  it)  on  the  inexpediency  of 
lengthening  the  period  of  worship  by  the  common  practice 
of  lumping  the  three  offices  in  the  morning  worship :  "  a 
powerful  obstacle,"  he  stated,  "  to  the  increase  of  the  Church 
in  America."  Bishop  White  also  recommended  the  correc- 
tion of  this  abuse.  The  evil  is  magnified  in  England  by 
the  greater  length  of  the  Litany,  the  unavoidable  repetition 
of  Creeds,  Pater  Nosters,  and  Collects,  and  the  introduction 
of  the  Anthem  ;  which,  added  to  the  metre  singing,  forms 
a  service  of  such  fearful  length,  that  (whilst  its  oppressive 
weariness,  especially  when  all  read,*  does  not  warrant  de- 

*  The  indolent  practice  of  reading  what  is  designed  and  set  down  to  be  sung 
cannot  be  sufficiently  deprecated.  Thus  the  beautiful  variety  of  our  service  is 
unperceived,  unenjoyed  by  the  catholic  worshipper.  When  in  the  metropolis,  for 
instance,  every  parish  church  and  chapel  possesses  the  materials  (with  proper 
training  doubtless  among  the  school  children)  of  as  good  a  choir  as  that  at  the 
cathedral,  the  Temple  church,  Broadway  and  Margaret-street  chapels,  etc.  how 
culpable  is  the  negligence  which  omits  all  attention  to  this  important  part  of  the 
public  worship  of  Almighty  God.  How  are  the  three  hundred  well  paid  clergy 
of  London  employed,  that  they  leave  an  important  part  of  the  duty  which  is 
especially  assigned  to  them  by  the  laws  of  the  Church,  to  the  direction  of  igno- 
rant and  incompetent  parish  subordinates'?  Was  the  unrivalled  worship  of 
the  Anglican  Church  thus  burlesqued  in  the  days  of  King  Edward,  and  Queen 
Elizabeth  1  The  following  directions,  from  the  latter's  memorable  "  Injunctions" 
to  the  clergy  of  her  realm,  show  that  the  slovenly  practice  of  reading  (and  in 
wretched  style  too,  in  nine  out  of  every  ten  of  our  churches)  forty  or  sixty  pages 
of  ritual,  by  parson,  clerk,  and  charity  children,  was  never  the  mode  of  worship 
intended  by  the  martyr  Reformers,  when  they  framed  the  offices  of  England's 
Reformed  Apostolic  Church : — 

"  Item.  Because  in  divers  collegiate,  and  also  some  parish  churches  hereto- 
fore, there  have  been  livings  appointed  for  the  maintenance  of  men  and  chil- 
dren to  use  singing  in  the  church,  by  means  whereof  the  laudable  service  of 
music  hath  been  had  in  estimation,  and  preserved  in  knowledge :  the  Queen's 
Majesty,  neither  meaning  in  any  wise  the  decay  of  any  thing  that  might  con- 
veniently tend  to  the  use  and  continuance  of  the  said  science,  neither  to  have 


332        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

sertion  of  the  Church,  and  a  relinquishment  of  her  privi- 
leges) fully  accounts  for  the  extensive  disrelish  for  the  ser- 
vices of  the  national  sanctuary — so  different  from  the  at- 
tachment manifested  by  Romanists  to  their  public  worship, 
and  the  preference  given  to  the  shorter  religious  services  of 
the  conventicle.  The  present  Bishop  of  Chester  has  re- 
marked that  a  few,  very  few  alterations  in  the  liturgy 
would  "  reconcile  millions  of  dissenters  to  the  Church  ;"  an 
assertion  which  no  one  can  doubt.  How  tremulously  re- 
sponsible are  those  parties  who  oppose  every  effort  on  the 
part  of  some  of  our  clergy  to  correct  an  existing  evil  by 
conforming  their  practice  to  the  judicious  directions  of  the 
rubric,  for  the  multitudes  who  are  lost  to  the  Church  on 
account  of  an  evil  so  easily  corrected  ! 

It  will  not,  perhaps,  be  considered  as  irrelevant  to  notice 
in  this  place,  that  unhappy  and  unnecessary  strife  which  has 
latterly  disturbed  the  peace  of  the  Church  at  home  on  the  sub- 

the  same  in  any  part  so  abused  in  the  church,  that  thereby  the  Common  Prayer 
should  be  the  worse  understanded  of  the  hearers,  willeth  and  commandeth,  that 
first,  no  alterations  be  made  of  such  assignments  of  living,  as  heretofore  hath 
been  appointed  to  the  use  of  singing  or  musick  in  the  church,  but  that  the  same 
go  remain.  And  that  there  be  a  modest  and  distinct  song  so  used  in  all  parts  of 
the  Common  Prayers  in  the  church,  that  the  same  may  be  as  plainly  understanded 
as  if  it  were  read  without  singing,  and  yet,  nevertheless,  for  the  comforting  of 
Buch  that  delight  in  musick,  it  may  be  permitted,  that  in  the  beginning,  or  in 
the  end  -of  the  Common  Prayer,  either  at  Morning  or  Evening,  there  may  be 
sung  an  Hymn,  or  such  like  song  to  the  praise  of  Almighty  God,  in  the  best  sort 
of  melody  amd  musick  that  may  be  conveniently  devised,  having  respect  that 
the  sentence  of  hymn  may  be  understanded  and  perceived. 

"  Item.  That  the  churchwardens  of  every  parish  shall  deliver  unto  our  Visit- 
ors the  inventories  of  vestments,  copes,  and  other  ornaments,  plate,  books  and 
specially  of  grayles,  couchers,  legends,  processionals,  manuals,  hymnala,  por- 
tuesses,  and  such  like,  appertaining  to  the  church. 

"  Item.  That  weekly  upon  Wednesdays  and  Fridays,  not  being  holy  days, 
the  curate  at  the  accustomed  hours  of  service  shall  resort  to  church,  and  cause 
warning  to  be  given  to  the  people  by  knolling  of  a  bell,  and  say  the  Litany  and 
Prayers." — Queen  Elizabeth's  Injunctions,  p.  10. 


THE    RUBRIC.  333 

ject  of  rubrical  conformity.  Never  was  a  civil  war  commen- 
ced and  prosecuted  on  such  trivial  and  absurd  grounds  ! 
Several  diocesan  bishops  acting  in  their  lawful  capacity  as 
ordinaries, — with  the  simple  and  obvious  purpose  of  correct- 
ing an  useless  irregularity  in  the  mode  of  conducting  public 
worship,  and  of  directing  the  parish  funds  for  benevolent 
objects,  through  the  legitimate  channel  of  the  Offertory — 
directed,  or  merely  suggested  to  their  clergy  the  observ- 
ance of  certain  neglected  rubrical  directions  in  the  Prayer 
Book  relating  to  the  celebration  of  the  Communion  office. 
Who,  but  the  open  contemners  of  law  would  resist  such  an 
injunction  from  the  episcopal  head  ?  Admitting  that  these 
proposed  "  changes"  in  one  (and  only  one)  of  the  public 
services  are  in  no  possible  degree  prejudicial  to  the  estab- 
lished "  protestant"  principles  of  the  English  Church,  and 
intrinsically  unimportant,  which  many  of  the  non-comply- 
ing clergy  concede,  then,— on  what  ground,  it  may  be  con- 
fidently asked,  is  the  refusal  to  introduce  them  justified, 
provided  clergymen  hold  themselves  bound  by  the  laws  of 
their  own  Church  J  This  is  the  only  light  in  which  to 
view  the  matter.  It  is  a  simple  question  ;  which  is  easier 
evaded  than  answered.  To  quote  a  text  of  Scripture,  or  to 
broach  an  irrelevant  discussion  on  "  the  comparative  claim3 
of  doctrines  and  ceremonies,*'  etc.,  are  only  the  evasions  of 
shuffling  expediency.  We  cannot  believe  that  a  tender- 
ness for  the  consciences  of  their  people  is  the  acting  motive 
with  men  whose  course  of  action  stirs  up  in  their  parish- 
ioners all  the  latent  feelings  of  rebellion  against  the  consti- 
tuted authorities  of  the  Church.  If  the  episcopal  mandate 
required  anything  calculated  to  wound  the  most  tender  con- 
science, the  case  might  be  different — but  this  is  not  pretended. 
The  only  obstacle  urged,  is  the  distrust  which  so  slight  an  al- 
teration in  the  order  of  the  public  service  is  calculated  to  pro- 
duce amongst  the  laity  in  their  spiritual  teachers — an  ap- 


334        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

prehension  that  the  movement  is  towards  Rome.  But  who 
first  suggested  this  bugbear,  is  the  question  ?  Was  it  not 
made  the  watchword  of  a  party  ? — though  the  proposed  im- 
provements have  no  possible  symbolical  reference  to  any 
thing  peculiarly  Romanist  either  in  doctrine  or  practice ; 
and  it  may  be  confidently  asked,  Would  a  general  and  si- 
multaneous compliance  with  episcopal  directions  by  all 
parties  in  the  clerical  ranks,  accompanied  (if  necessary)  with 
a  simple  explanation  of  the  reasons  for  the  alteration,  have 
produced  any  dissatisfaction,  or  opposition  amongst  the 
laity  ?  Not,  it  may  be  confidently  affirmed,  in  a  single  in- 
stance !  Nay,  if  the  public  mind  were  not  in  so  great  a 
degree  misled  by  those  filling  the  ministerial  office,  who, 
forgetful  of  their  obligations,  encourage  popular  resistance 
to  episcopal  authority,  the  intelligent  laity  would  see  in  the 
highest  officer  of  the  Church,  a  guardian  of  their  own  rights 
and  privileges  against  priestly  encroachments ;  and  in  the 
strengthening  and  upholding  of  the  full  dignity  and  pre- 
rogatives of  the  episcopal  office,  a  certain  security  against 
an  abuse  of  the  pastoral  office.  It  will  scarcely  be  irrelevant 
to  suggest  the  enquiry,— what  does  a  minister  of  the  epis- 
copal Church  of  England,  promise  before  he  receives  his 
commission  from  the  hands  of  the  chief  pastor  ? 
Let  the  office  of  ordination  furnish  the  answer  : — 
After  assenting  to  the  searching  question  whether  "  he 
thinks  he  is  truly  called  according  to  the  will  of  Jesus 
Christ,  and  according  to  the  Canons  of  the  Church  to  the 
ministry  of  the  same  ?"  and  promising  in  detail  a  compli- 
ance with  the  Church's  requirements,  the  bishop  asks  the 
candidate  : — 

"Will  you  reverently  obey  your  bishop,  and  other  chief 
ministers,  who,  according  to  the  Canons  of  the  Church  may 
have  the  charge  and  government  over  you,  following  with 
a  glad  mind  and  will  their  godly  admonitions  ? 


THE    RUBRIC.  335 

To  which  the  candidate  for  the  diaconate  replied   before 
the  witnessing  congregation  : 

"  I  will  endeavour  so  to  do,  the  Lord  being  my  helper? 
To  make  this  engagement  doubly  binding,  the  same 
party  when  advanced  to  the  higher  office  in  the  sacred 
ministry— the  full  priesthood— renews  this  vow  of  obedience 
to  the  bishop,  adding  another  "  to  submit  himself  (also)  to 
the  godly  judgment  of  his  superior." 

Which  engagements,  so  publicly  and  emphatically  made, 
and  inseparably  bound  to  his  soul  by  the  seal  of  the  Holy 
Eucharist— then  partaken  on  his  bended  knees— an  honest 
man  will  respect. 

A  knave  only,  and  an  arrant  one,  will  set  his  bishop's 
injunctions  at  defiance  ;  treat  contemptuously  his  brotherly 
suggestions  ;  and  claim  it  a  mark  of  his  "  gospel  freedom" 
that  he  is  independent  of  episcopal  interference.  Nor  does 
the  "  evangelical"  preaching  and  creed  of  such  a  man  exon- 
erate him  from  the  imputation  of  wilful  dishonesty. 

But  there  are  other  engagements  binding  on  every  in- 
stituted minister  of  the  Church  (■«  evangelicals  as  well  as 
"  Puseyite")  which,  however  little  regarded  by  those  whose 
resistance  to  "episcopal  interference"  is  a  test  of  their 
"  evangelical"  soundness,  bears  still  more  expressly  on  this 
subject. 

In  the  "  Letter  of  Institution"  which  a  rector  or  vicar  re- 
ceives from  his  bishop,  the  new  incumbent  is  only  «  licensed 
and  authorised"  to  hold  his  cure  while  « complying  with 
the  rubrics  and  canons  of  the  Church,  and  with  such  law- 
ful directions  as  he  shall  at  any  time  receive  from  the 
bishop."  He  is  further  admonished  «  faithfully  to  feed  that 
portion  of  the  flock  of  Christ  intrusted  to  him;  not  as  a 
man  j)leaser,  but  as  continually  bearing  in  mind  that  he  is 
accountable  to  [his  bishop]  here,  and  to  the  Chief  Bishop, 
and  Sovereign  Judge  of  all  hereafter." 


336        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

Nor  is  this  all :  The  interpretation  of  the  rubrics,  by  the 
Chinch's  rules,  rests  with  the  bishop,  who  is  the  only  and, 
if  he  chooses  to  exert  the  legal  as  well  as  inherent  powers 
of  his  office,  the  final  arbiter  in  every  dispute  which  may 
arise  between  a  minister  and  his  congregation.  In  addition 
to  which  the  Canons  of  the  Church,  by  which  every  cler- 
gyman is  solemnly  bound,  as  distinctly  assign  to  the  epis- 
copal officer  the  jurisdiction  in  all  matters  relating  to  the 
Ritual.  The  directions  for  the  regulation  of  our  public 
worship  are  few  and  simple ;  their  observance  easy,  and  if 
even  complied  with  minutely  would  never  have  awakened 
the  hostility  of  the  laity  but  for  the  factious  objections  of 
indolent  or  demagogue  priests,  to  whom  the  peace  of  the 
Church  was  a  secondary  consideration  when  their  own 
ease  or  temporary  popularity  was  the  object  to  be  secured. 
That  some  few  have  acted  ignorantly  it  is  charitable  to  be- 
lieve ;  not  so  with  those  who  took  a  prominent  lead  in  their 
resistance  to  "  episcopal  interference." 

A  more  upright  and  catholic  minded  course  on  the  part 
of  those  clergy  whose  act  of  contumacy  has  been  a  signal 
for  the  lower  ranks  of  Church  officials  to  copy  their  spirit, 
would  have  saved  the  latter  from  that  unenviable  fame 
which  they  have  in  several  cases  obtained,  by  their  delicate 
apprehension  of  the  relation  subsisting  between  subordinate 
parish  authorities  and  the  episcopal  heads  of  the  Church. 
Had  they  informed  themselves  of  the  historical,  as  well  as 
the  received  meaning  of  the  term  "  protestant,"  and  of  the 
custom  of  other  "  protestant"  Churches  and  Communions  ; 
had  a  little  information  on  these  points  being  obtained  from 
the  proper  source,  before  memorialising  the  episcopal  officer, 
and  in  said  memorials,  protests,  and  vestry  speeches  deter- 
mining what  are,  and  what  are  not,  the  distinctive  features 
of  a  Reformed  Church,  they  would  have  escaped  the  posi- 
tion which  they  now   occupy:    a  better  course  this  than 


THE    RUBRIC.  337 

taking  the  sagacious  judgment  of  the  Sunday  newspaper 
press,  or  even  than  forming  their  opinion  on  the  partial  de- 
cisions of   the  more    respectable   daily  journalists,  whose 
sphere  of  criticism,    however  wide,   is  certainly  not  legit- 
imately extended  to  this  discussion.     If  these  gentlemen  of 
the  daily  and  weekly  press  do  not  write  ignorantly  when 
they  take   up  their  pens   to  proscribe  "  Puseyism"  even  in 
the  innocent  form  of  rubrical  conformity,  they  only  show 
how  glaringly  truth  and  facts  are  perverted  for  party  pur- 
poses.—But  a  steady  perseverance  in   the  path  of  duty  on 
the  part  of  the  clergy,  will  neutralise  this  (usurped)  influ- 
ence in  the  Church,  and  in   time  reconcile  even  her  now 
malcontent  members  to  those  admirable  provisions  for  their 
spiritual  wants,  and  that  decent  and  significant  formulary, 
which    the  English  Reformers  bequeathed  to  this  nation. 
Though  the  former  has  been  criminally  neglected,  and  the 
latter  obscured  by  modern  innovation,  the  duty  is  no  less 
binding  on  the  clergy  to  carry  out  the  one,  and  exhibit  the 
other  to  the  letter.     In  this  they  are  justified  in  resisting  to 
the  utmost  the  unauthorised  interference  of  official  subordi- 
nates and  their  mobbish  backers :  strong  as  may  be  (for  a 
tune)  the  faction  which  instigates  the  opposition,  and  influ- 
ential as  may  be  the  political  organ  which  sanctions  and 
applauds  the  outrage. 

The  following  from  Dr.  Jarvis's  work  entitled  "  No  Union 
with  Rome,"  is  deserving  the  attentive  regard  of  these  open- 
mouthed  advocates  for  a  "  protestant  Church,"  who,  as  Dr. 
Jarvis's  account  shows,  must,  to  be  consistent,  be  contented 
to  rank  themselves  with  dissenters  from  the  Church,  and  the 
opponents  of  protestantism  on  the  Continent,  its  original 
birth-place. 

"  I  pass  on  to  that  third  definition  of  popery  which  Mr. 
Hallam  calls  '  the  last  and  most  enlarged  sense,'  and 
'  which,'  he  says,  <  the  vulgar  naturally  adopted  ;"  I  mean 

22 


338  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

that  which  makes  it  extend  to  ceremonies  and  eccle- 
siastical OBSERVANCES. 

"Under  this  head  must  be  included,  1.  The  presbyte- 
rians  of  Scotland  of  all  sects  ;  2.  The  Independents  and 
other  dissenters  in  England  calling  themselves  "  protest- 
ants  ;"  and  3.  the  Congregationalists  of  this  country  [Amer- 
ica] and  the  descendants  of  the  Scottish  Presbyterians, 
with  the  various  sects  which  have  emanated  from  them. 
All  these  accuse  the  Church  of  England  and  our  Commu- 
nion of  popery  in  our  ceremonies  and  ecclesiastical  obser- 
vances. The  use  of  a  prescribed  ritual,  from  which  it  is 
not  lawful  for  the  minister  to  depart ;  the  celebration  of  fes- 
tivals, such  as  Christmas,  Circumcision,  Epiphany,  Easter 
and  Whitsuntide  ;  the  observance  of  fasts  on  stated  days 
and  seasons,  such  as  Wednesdays  and  Fridays,  Ember- 
days,  Lent,  Passion  Week,  etc. ;  the  commemoration  of 
saints  on  special  days ;  daily  worship  without  sermons, 
etc. ;  the  wearing  of  surplices,  and  other  ecclesiastical  hab- 
iliments ;  the  sign  of  the  cross  in  baptism,  the  use  of  altars, 
kneeling  at  the  reception  of  the  elements  in  the  Lord's 
Supper,  and  communion  of  the  sick  ;  the  ring  as  a  token 
and  pledge  in  marriage,  and  bowing  at  the  name  of  Jesus ; 
are  all  objected  to  as  '  popish,'  consequently  any  increase  of 
such  observances,  as  reverence  in  entering  a  church,  bow- 
ing towards  the  altar,  placing  a  cross  over  or  upon  the  altar, 
burning  lights  upon  the  same,  are  all  looked  upon  as  the 
sure  indications  of  a  desire  to  return  to  "  popery." 

"  But  they  who  make  popery  to  consist  in  these  things 
are  little  aware  of  the  dilemma  into  which  they  bring  them- 
selves !  There  is  not  one  of  these  observances,  which  is 
not  in  use  among  some  one  or  other  of  the  protestants 
either  of  the  Evangelical  or  the  Reformed  Communions 
on  the  Continent  of  Europe.  The  use  of  a  prescribed 
ritual  is,  I  believe,  universal.     One  of  the  pastors  of  Gene- 


THR    RUBRIC.  339 

va  told  me  they  were  about  to  alter  their  liturgy ;  and  upon 
my  asking — in  what  respect?  he  said,  to  bring  it  nearer  to 
the  Church  of  England,  especially  in  responsive  worship. 
This  desire  to  make  their  worship  more  fervent  by  the 
united  voices  of  minister  and  congregation,  has  already 
shown  itself  in  the  liturgy  of  the  Canton  of  the  Grisons,  to 
which  reference  has  been  already  made,  as  published  by 
their  synod  in  1831.  They  have  a  Litany  which,  in  sub- 
stance, accords  with  ours ;  and  in  many  of  their  services, 
especially  in  that  for  the  Communion,  the  responsive  mode 
of  worship  is  introduced.  At  Zurich,  though  the  old  sys- 
tem of  prayer  by  the  minister's  voice  only  is  preserved,  I 
held  the  prayer  book  in  my  hand  through  the  whole  service, 
and  can  aver  that  not  a  word  was  uttered  which  was  not 
in  the  prescribed  ritual.  The  festivals  of  Christmas,  Easter, 
Ascension  and  Whitsunday,  with  the  Mondays  following 
Easter  and  Whitsunday,  are  celebrated.  Passion  week  is 
observed  by  services  every  day,  and  there  are  special  ser- 
vices for  Palm  Sunday,  Holy  Thursday  (or  High  Thursday 
as  it  is  called,  in  commemoration  of  the  institution  of  the 
Eucharist)  and  Good  Friday.  There  are  also  regular 
week  day  services,  morning  and  evening,  and  lectures  two 
or  three  times  a  week.  Such  is  the  practice  of  the  Cal- 
vinists. 

"  Among  Lutherans,  there  is  the  closest  conformity  to  us 
in  rites  and  ceremonies.  They  observe  all  the  festivals 
and  fasts  and  saints'  days  which  we  do.  In  some  of  their 
churches,  as  for  example,  in  Wirtemberg,  and  I  believe  in 
Baden,  they  wear  surplices  ;  not  merely  the  simple  garment 
of  white  linen  which  we  use,  but  the  more  ornamented  and 
costly  garment  used  in  the  Church  of  Rome.  They  use 
the  sign  of  the  cross,  not  only  in  baptism,  but  in  consecra- 
ting the  elements  in  the  Lord's  Supper.  They  have  altars 
with  lights  burning  upon  them,  and  not  merely  a  cross,  but 


340        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

a  crucifix,  in  the  centre.  They  kneel  when  they  receive 
the  elements,  and  administer  the  wafer,  as  the  Church  of 
Rome  does,  by  putting  it  into  the  mouth  of  the  recipient. 
The  Communion  is  administered  in  private  to  the  sick. 
The  ring  is  used  in  marriage,  and  they  bow  at  the  name  of 
Jesus.  Let  it  be  observed  that  these  are  the  original 
Protestants.  If  our  ceremonies  and  ecclesiastical  ob- 
servances are  popish,  then  were  Luther  and  Melancthon 
eminently  papistical." 


CHAPTER  LII. 

GENERAL    CONVENTION    OF    1841. 

The  following  week  the  General  Convention  of  the 
Church  commenced  its  sittings  in  St.  Paul's,  New  York. 
As  this  meeting  of  the  great  council  of  the  Church  is  per- 
haps the  most  interesting  and  important  occasion  recorded 
in  my  American  journal,  a  detailed  account  of  it  may  not 
be  unacceptable. 

St.  Paul's  is  the  second  church  for  size  in  New  York, 
and  well  adapted  for  the  services  which  were  solemnized 
within  its  walls  on  Wednesday,  October  6th.  The  entire 
body  of  the  church  was  filled  by  the  clerical  and  lay  dele- 
gates, the  former  in  their  collegiate  gowns  occupying  the 
middle  portion.  At  ten  o'clock  the  bishops,  full  robed,  en- 
tered through  the  great  western  door,  and  proceeding  up 
the  centre  aisle  took  their  places  in  the  chancel.  What  an 
interesting  group  was  that !  The  first  in  the  procession 
was  the  venerable  presiding  bishop,  his  head  whitened  with 
seventy-five  winters,  twenty  of  these  spent  in  the  active, 
unceasing  labours  of  the  episcopate  ;  his  form  still  erect  and 
manly,  though  his  countenance  is  deeply  furrowed,  bearing 
the  marks  of  intense  concern,  inseparable  from  "  the  care  of 
all  the  Churches,"  and  a  field  of  diocesan  labour  more 
severe  than  any  other  in  the  country.  Following  the 
primate,  the  reverend  form  of  the  Bishop  of  Virginia  ap- 
pears "  with  shaking  hands  and  whitened  locks,  an  appro- 
priate representative  and  successor  of  the  apostles."*     Next 

*  Bishop  Henshaw's  Life  of  the  late  Bishop  of  Virginia,  p.  310. 


342        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

comes  the  Bishop  of  Illinois,  athletic  in  form,  yet  showing 
the  lines  of  care,  and  an  aspect  of  ill-concealed  restless  anx- 
iety. How  instantly  does  the  imagination  follow  him  to 
the  hills  and  prairies  of  the  west,  where  his  pastoral  crook, 
swayed  with  wisdom  and  judgment,  has  gathered  so  large  a 
company  of  converts  "  oDedient  to  the  faith,"  whose  children 
shall  call  him  blessed  ;  and  where  his  persevering  industry 
has  raised  up  two  universities. 

"  Ever  witness  for  him 
Those  twins  of  learning." 

Bishop  Griswold  occupied  the  right  of  the  altar,  and 
Bishop  Moore  the  left.  Two  priests  read  the  Morning 
Prayer  and  Litany  at  the  reading  desk,  and  four  deacons 
served  the  table  by  lifting  the  oblations,  and  distributing 
the  remaining  elements  after  all  had  communicated.  The 
Communion  service  was  divided  between  the  two  senior 
prelates. 

The  sermon  was  preached  by  the  Bishop  of  New  York, 
from  the  text  "  For  whom  he  did  foreknow  them  he  also 
did  predestinate."  It  was  a  note  of  peace,  like  the  Articles 
of  the  Church ;  and  was  designed  to  produce  harmony  and 
peace  among  the  assembled  representatives  of  the  Church, 
by  pointing  out  the  common  ground  on  which  they  stood 
with  regard  to  controverted  points  of  theology ;  and  the 
effect  was  apparently  such  as  was  intended.  After  1075 
persons  had  communicated,  there  was  an  interchange  of 
greetings  between  the  members  of  the  Convention.  This 
affecting  scene  was  thus  described  by  a  clerical  eye  wit- 
ness : — 

"  What  a  meeting  of  Christian  brothers  !  Brethren  be- 
loved, long  separated,  and  labouring  in  different  portions  of 
their  master's  vineyard,  were  permitted  to  see  each  other 
again  in  the  flesh.     It  is  not  for  the  pen  to  tell  what  was 


GENERAL    CONVENTION    OF    1841-  343 

felt  amidst  this  brotherly  shaking  of  hands — the  affection- 
ate smiles,  salutations,  enquiries,  congratulations  and  re- 
joicings— God  be  praised  for  such  a  meeting, — such  a  priv- 
ilege. It  was  worth  travelling  a  long  tedious  journey  for — 
a  type  of  what  God's  children  will  experience  in  the  land  of 
life  and  bliss." 

The  session  of  the  General  Convention  lasted  a  fortnight ; 
the  house  of  clerical  and  lay  deputies  occupying  the  body 
of  the  church,  and  the  bishops  a  consistory  room  adjoining, 
which  was  appropriately  fitted  up  for  the  occasion.  Some 
alterations  were  made  in  existing  canons,  and  five  new 
canons  were  passed.  One  of  these  related  to  the  absence 
of  a  clergyman  from  his  diocess  without  sufficient  cause  ; 
another  to  the  election  of  missionary  bishops  to  the  office  of 
diocesan  bishop,  in  which  the  canon  directed  that  a  major- 
ity of  the  bishops  and  standing  committees  should  concur 
before  such  translation  should  be  legal ;  and  another,  on 
the  trial  of  bishops,  requiring  the  concurrence  of  two  thirds 
of  his  own  rank,  and  fixing  seven  as  the  quorum  of  episco- 
pal judges,  besides  the  presenting  prelate. 

Many  things  were  debated,  and  much  eloquence  lost  in 
an  effort  to  obtain  the  enactment  of  a  canon  to  authorize 
the  consecration  of  foreign  bishops  under  certain  limita- 
tions, in  order  to  give  Texas  and  Liberia  episcopal  super- 
vision ;  but  a  large  majority  of  the  lower  house  withstood 
the  proposition,  and  likewise  returned  a  proposed  canon, 
sent  in  by  the  house  of  bishops  to  create  a  new  class  of  un- 
preaching  deacons. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Jarvis,  as  Historiographer  of  the  Church, 
submitted  a  collection  of  manuscripts,  with  the  accompany- 
ing note  which  will  speak  for  itself : 

"  Right  Reverend  Fathers  in  Christ, 
"  Having  been  honoured  by  the  General  Convention  of 


344        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

1833,  with  the  appointment  of  'Historiographer  of  the 
Church,'  I  think  it  my  duty  to  report  to  the  House  of  Bish- 
ops, with  whom  the  resolution  originated,  the  progress 
which  has  been  made. 

"  It  seemed  to  me  that  in  order  to  effect  the  object  proposed, 
it  would  be  necessary,  if  possible,  to  settle  several  contested 
points,  in  such  a  manner  as  to  satisfy  both  learned  and  un- 
learned readers.  This  could  be  done  in  no  other  way  than 
by  laying  before  them  in  English,  that  evidence  which  is 
now  locked  up  in  foreign  languages,  and  scattered  through 
a  great  number  of  volumes,  and  which,  from  the  scarcity 
of  public  libraries  in  our  country,  is  inaccessible  even  to 
persons  who  by  their  education  are  fitted  to  examine  the 
original  authors.  It  is  obvious,  indeed,  that  this  cannot  be 
done  in  the  whole  course  of  ecclesiastical  history,  without 
swelling  the  work  to  an  enormous  extent.  It  must  be  con- 
fined, therefore,  to  points  of  great  importance  ;  and  with 
respect  to  the  rest,  much  must  be  left  to  the  fidelity  and  ac- 
curacy of  the  historian.  But  if  he  be  found  faithful  and 
accurate  in  the  discussion  of  these  important  points,  he  will 
establish  a  character,  both  as  a  reporter  and  a  judge,  which 
will  make  his  readers  more  ready  to  trust  him  when  called 
upon  to  credit  his  assertions. 

"  The  exact  time  of  the  birth  and  death  of  our  Saviour, 
the  key  stone  by  which  prophecy  as  well  as  history  must 
be  sustained,  seemed  to  be  one  of  those  important  points. 
This  I  have  attempted  to  ascertain  ;  and  the  attempt  has 
succeeded  beyond  my  most  sanguine  expectations.  With 
no  theory  to  sustain,  and  fearing  to  be  misled  by  the  the- 
ories of  others,  I  have  made  use  of  modern  writers,  only  so 
far  as  to  be  led  by  them  to  their  authorities.  In  all  cases 
where  it  was  possible,  I  have  gone  back  directly  to  ancient 
heathen  as  well  as  Christian  authors,  as  being  in  the  lan- 
guage of  your  resolution,  '  the  most  original  sources  now 


GENERAL    CONVENTION    OF    1841.  345 

extant.'  Not  only  has  every  question  been  settled  on  their 
testimony,  but  the  testimony  itself  has  also  been  exhibited. 
With  regard  to  Latin  writers,  the  original  text  has  been 
generally  subjoined.  The  fear  of  swelling  the  work  too 
much,  and  increasing  the  expense  of  publication,  has  pre- 
vented the  addition  of  Greek  quotations  ;  an  omission  which 
I  regret,  but  which  I  have  endeavoured  as  much  as  possible 
to  remedy  by  exact  references. 

"  I  have  laboured  hard  to  finish  the  work  before  the  ses- 
sion of  the  present  Convention  ;  but  the  cares  of  a  parish, 
the  necessary  instruction  of  pupils,  and  domestic  afflictions 
have  rendered  it  impossible  to  get  it  ready  for  the  press.  I 
am  obliged,  therefore,  to  lay  it  before  you  in  an  imperfect 
state,  but  it  is  sufficiently  advanced  to  show  its  plan,  its  ob- 
ject, and  its  success. 

"  If  it  be  honoured,  Right  Reverend  Fathers,  with  your 
approbation,  I  propose,  after  it  is  published,  to  add  some 
other  dissertations  which  are  nearly  ready  for  the  press,  and 
then  to  go  on  with  the  Ecclesiastical  History  down  to  the 
great  schism  by  which  the  Catholic  Church  was  rent  in  the 
fifth  century.  Whether  I  shall  be  able  to  accomplish  this, 
or  more  than  this,  depends  upon  the  will  of  Him  <  to  whom 
alone  belong  the  issues  of  life  and  death.' 

"Being  unable  myself  to  attend  the  General  Conven- 
tion, I  have  requested  my  assistant,  the  Rev.  John  Wil- 
liams, to  proceed  to  New  York,  for  the  purpose  of  submit- 
ting my  manuscript  to  your  venerable  body. 

I  have  the  honour  to  remain, 
Right  Reverend  Fathers, 
Your  faithful  Son  and  servant  in  the  Lord, 

Samuel  Farmer  Jarvis. 
Rector  of  Christ  Church  Middletown." 

The  letter  and  manuscripts  were  referred  to  a  committee 


346  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

consisting  of  Bishops  Hopkins,  Doane,  and  Whittingham, 
who  reported — 

"That  they  regard  with  great  satisfaction  the  progress 
which  the  learned  author  has  made  in  preparing  for  the 
press  the  first  volume  of  the  series,  which  his  appointment 
as  Historiographer  was  designed  to  bring  forth ;  and  con- 
sider it  a  duty  on  the  part  of  the  Church  to  give  all  the  en- 
couragement in  their  power  to  its  publication.     It  appears 
to  them,  as  well  from  the  synopsis  of  its  contents,  as  from 
the  best  examination  which  their  limited  time  would  allow, 
to  be  a  thorough  and  comprehensive  analysis  of  all  the  evi- 
dence  extant,  whether  sacred  or   profane,  upon  the  most' 
difficult  and  important  points  in  ecclesiastical  chronology, 
namely,  the  precise  years  of  the  birth  and  death  of  our 
Saviour,  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.     And  the  committee  take 
pleasure  in  the  acknowledgment,  that  notwithstanding  their 
familiarity  with  the  author's  long-established  reputation  for 
deep  and  accurate  learning,  they  were  struck  with  the  ex- 
traordinary research   and   exact   fidelity  exhibited   in   the 
work  submitted  to  them,  and  hail  its  production  as  being 
calculated  to  reflect  honour  upon  himself,  and  the  body  to 
which   he  belongs.     With  these  views  the  committee  re- 
spectfully recommend  the  following  resolution  :— 

"  Resolved. — That  the  House  of  Bishops  receive  with 
great  satisfaction  the  first  volume,  introductory  to  the  Ec- 
clesiastical History  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Jarvis,  their  Histo- 
riographer, now  ready  for  publication.  They  have  exam- 
ined, and  approve  the  plan  of  the  work,  and  commend  it  to 
the  patronage  of  the  Church." 

A  correspondence  conducted  by  the  presiding  bishop  with 
the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  and  other  foreign  prelates, 
on  the  subject  of  clergymen  passing  to  or  from  the  jurisdic- 
tion of  different  national  Churches  in  Christendom  was 
laid  before  the  House  of  Bishops,  and  the  canon  relating 


GENERAL    CONVENTION    OF    1841.  347 

to  letters  dismissory  was  remodelled  to  meet  the  case  ;. 
copies  of  which,  accompanied  by  expressions  of  frater- 
nal regard  from  the  American  bishops,  were  directed  to 
be  sent  to  the  said  primates.  May  the  day  be  not  far 
distant  when  the  Communion  of  all   Churches,   as  parts 

of    the     ONE     SPIRITUAL     BODY     OF     BELIEVERS,     shall     be 

as  it  was  in  the  first  three  centuries.  "  Each  bishop" 
we  are  informed,  "  could  then  give  to  any  member  of  his 
Church  who  might  visit  foreign  countries,  commendatory 
letters  which,  on  being  presented  to  the  most  remote 
Churches,  secured  his  immediate  admission  to  all  the  privi- 
leges of  Christian  fellowship,"*  This  fraternal  intercourse, 
it  is  believed,  will  soon  arise  when  the  Roman  bishop  ex- 
changes his  triple  crown  for  a  mitre,  and  the  various 
churches  now  in  bondage  to  that  prelate  renounce  their 
condition  of  dependance  on  a  modern  and  usurped  head- 
ship. 

Another  resolution  which  was  taken  at  this  Convention, 
related  to  the  preservation  of  the  records  of  the  consecra- 
tion of  bishops,  which  directed  that  the  librarian  of  the 
General  Theological  Seminary  should  be  the  Register  of 
the  same,  to  be  kept  in  the  Seminary  library. 

But  the  most  really  important  resolution  to  the  Church 
population  of  the  country,  passed  by  both  houses  at  this 
Convention,  was  the  following,  which  will  speak  for  it- 
self: 

"  Resolved. — That  in  view  of  the  rapid  increase  in  the 
population  of  the  United  States,  and  also  in  order  to  carry 
out  fully  her  parochial  organization,  it  is  the  opinion  of  this 
Convention  that  the  Church  should  call  the  attention  of 
her  members  to  the  duty  of  providing  more  ample  free 
sittings." 

The  American  Church  has  been  (unfortunately  for  the 
*  Palmer's  History  of  the  Church. 


348  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

millions  which  her  exclusive  system  of  church  accommoda- 
tion has  lost  to  her)  much  too  late  in  the  day  in  this  part 
of  her  duty.  But  is  not  our  own  Church  to  blame  for  set- 
ting the  example,  though  in  a  modified  degree,  to  her 
American  daughter  of  "  uppermost  rooms"  and  "  chief  seats 
in  the  synagogue?"' — a  practice  perfectly  antagonist  to  the 
parochial  system  and  the  spirit  of  our  national  Church. 
To  carry  the  parochial  system  out  on  catholic  (i.  e.  Chris- 
tian) principles,  pews,  board  partitions,  separating  patrician 
from  plebeian  worshippers,  fee'd  attendants,  and  sundry 
other  anomalies  which  still  linger  about  our  parish  temples 
must  be  banished  from  the  sanctuary  of  the  "poor  man's 
Church."  The  catholic-minded  Church  benefactor  who 
will  chair  a  new  church  or  chapel,  confers  the  benefits  of 
public  worship  and  pulpit  instruction  on  thousands,  whilst 
he  who  pews  it,  excludes  thousands  from  these  inestimable 
benefits  ;  while  securing  (illegally)  accommodation  to  only 
a  few  hundred.  "  The  squire's  pew"  though  very  conve- 
nient and  agreeable  to  those  who  desire  to  carry  into  the 
temple  of  God  the  privacy,  exclusiveness  and  personal  lux- 
uries of  home,  is  one  of  the  most  odious  and  un-catholic 
anomalies  of  our  rural  sanctuaries  ;  and  the  elevated  box- 
pens  set  apart  for  the  wearers  of  silks  and  jewellery  are  as 
unpicturesque  as  they  are  anti-Christian.  In  what  other 
country  of  Christian  Europe  is  this  "  protestant"  peiv-syism 
to  be  witnessed  ?  Where  else  but  in  "  protestant  England" 
is  the  altar,  and  the  priest,  and  the  pulpit  partially  obscured, 
and  the  sound  of  the  worship  intercepted,  and  the  tout  en- 
semble of  each  beautiful  church  destroyed  by  similar  de- 
formities? In  this  much  needed  reformation,  the  strictures 
of  Mr.  Gresley,  in  his  recent  work  on  "  The  real  danger  of 
the  Church  of  England"  on  those  who  "  dare  to  aver  that 
the  restoration  of  the  genuine  service  of  the  English 
Church  is  an  approximation  to  "  popery,"  equally  apply. 


GENERAL    CONVENTION    OF    1841.  349 

"  The  folly  and  falsehood  of  the  accusation"  he  writes 
"  would  be  its  own  refutation,  if  it  were  not  for  the  incredi- 
ble prejudice  that  abounds.  No  doubt  it  is  right  to  make 
due  allowance  for  honest  prejudice.  But  when  thousands 
of  souls  are  perishing  around  us  for  lack  of  Christian  sym- 
pathy ;  when  many  are  leaving  our  ranks  for  dissent,  and 
some  beguiled  to  Romanism  ;  when  too  many  of  our  old 
hereditary  worshippers  in  the  Church  of  their  fathers,  are, 
it  is  to  be  feared,  dragging  out  their  lives  in  a  listless  indif- 
ference, making  no  progress  in  warmth  or  vital  godliness, 
and  this  mainly  in  consequence  of  the  absurd  negligence 
and  want  of  propriety  which  prevails  in  our  Church  service 
— it  is  surely  no  time  to  listen  to  the  prejudices,  or  regard 
the  calumnies,  of  those  who  maintain  the  monstrous  para- 
dox, that  the  restoration  of  the  genuine  service  of  our 
Church  is  a  recurrence  to  popery.  Honest  prejudice  de 
serves  to  be  respected,  but  such  mischievous  absurdity  must 
be  confronted  and  exposed. — But  it  is  not  only  the  public 
service  of  the  Church  that  needs  to  be  thus  revivified. 
The  whole  personal  intercourse  between  the  clergy  and  the 
people  requires  to  be  placed  on  a  better  footing  ;  and  this  as 
regards  all  classes,  but  especially  the  young.  How  almost 
universally  does  the  parochial  pastor  lose  all  influence  over 
the  youth  of  his  flock  as  soon  as  tbey  leave  the  Sunday- 
school  !  How  commonly  do  they  fall  into  sin  and  indiffer- 
ence, and  never,  alas,  return  to  the  fold  !  Much,  very  much 
is  wanting  to  give  the  parochial  pastor  that  religious  influ- 
ence over  his  parishioners  which  shall  enable  him  to  be 
their  guide  through  the  thorny  paths  of  life,  and  train  them 
for  Heaven  and  happiness." 

The  sad  truth  of  these  remarks  is  verified  in  the  success 
of  a  dissenting  society  styled  "  the  London  City  Mission." 
The  success  of  this  league  in  the  large  parish  of  Islington 
was  made  the  subject  of  boast  at  a  late  public  meeting 


350        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

which  curiosity  and  the  name  of  a  clerical  secretary  (/  /) 
on  the  printed  circulars  led  me  to  attend.  In  a  populous 
district  of  Islington  a  woman,  though  "  sitting  under 
the  ministry  of  one  of  the  most  evangelical  clergymen" 
in  that  favoured  region,  "  was  unable  to  answer  the  most 
simple  question  relating  to  her  belief  as  a  Christian"  pro- 
pounded to  her  by  the  dissenting  '  missionary'  from  the 
want  of  oral  instruction.  The  mere  preaching  to  which 
she  had  been  accustomed  to  listen  having  never  communi- 
cated to  the  mind  of  this  benighted  person  a  single  definite 
idea  :  a  statement  which,  judging  from  a  discourse  delivered 
in  my  own  hearing  by  a  preacher  of  some  celebrity  in  the 
same  quarter  I  am  fully  prepared  to  credit.  This  may  be 
a  digression  ;  but  will  it  be  believed  by  a  future  generation, 
that  in  a  parish  containing  56,000  souls  all  the  churches 
were,  in  the  nineteenth  century,  closed  against  the  parish- 
ioners, famishing  for  their  "daily  bread,"  morning,  noon, 
and  evening  of  each  day  except  Sundays  and  the  greater 
Festivals  ? — and  that  the  Holy  Communion  was  only  cele- 
brated once  a  month  ?  The  practice  of  the  clergy  of  Isling- 
ton, whose  solemn  engagements  are  thus  slighted  (whilst 
they  make  no  scruple  to  receive  the  comfortable  incomes  of 
their  cures)  is  shamed  by  the  example  of  a  dissenting  con- 
gregation in  that  parish,  which  for  the  last  ten  years  has 
maintained  daily  service  at  6  a.  m.  and  5  p.  m.  ;  on  Sun- 
days, prayers  at  6  a.  m.,  again  at  9  with  Communion  and 
a  sermon  ;  at  10  the  Communion,  prayers  at  3  p.  m.,  and 
at  6  (with  preaching) ;  on  Wednesdays  and  Fridays  (in 
addition  to  the  stated  matins  and  even-song)  the  Litany 
at  9  a.  m.  with  preaching,  and  catechising  at  3  p.  m.  By 
this  arrangement  a  small  unendowed  chapel,  furnishes 
through  its  irregular  channels,  spiritual  food  to  a  larger 
number  in  that  neglected  ecclesiastical  section  of  the  me- 
tropolis than  any  three  of   the   churches,    of  whose   use 


GENERAL    CONVENTION    OF    1841.  351 

meanwhile  the  56,000  parishioners  are  illegally  defrauded 
by  their  authorized  ministers.  Oh  !  shame,  where  is  thy 
blush  3  Compare  with  this  specimen  of  evangelical  indo- 
lence and  dishonesty  on  the  part  of  priests  who,  as  the 
condition  of  receiving  the  emoluments  of  their  office,  have 
promised  "  to  minister  the  doctrines  and  sacraments,  and 
the  discipline  of  Christ  as  the  Lord  hath  commanded,  and 
as  [their]  Church  hath  received  the  same,"  and  "  to  use 
both  public  and  private  monitions  and  exhortations,  as  well 
to  the  sick  as  the  whole  within  their  cures,  as  need  shall 
require'1  with  the  hourly  labour  of  the  papal  agents  in 
London : 

The  Romish  chapel  of  St.  Mary  in  Moorfields,  with  four 
clergymen,  supplies  the  benefit  of  public  worship  to  a  con- 
gregation of  30,000  souls.  To  accomplish  this,  there  are 
four  daily,  and  six  Sunday  services.  Trinity  church,  Ber- 
mondsey,  is  used  by  9,000  Romanists  ;  and  the  new  cathe- 
dral of  St.  George,  in  Lambeth,  is  designed  for  the  stated 
accommodation  of  20,000  regular  worshippers.  I  call  the  at- 
tention of  my  London  readers  to  the  example  of  Dr.  Doyle 
with  his  three  assistants,*  ministering  to  the  spiritual  wants 
of  such  a  flock,  at  the  altar,  in  the  confessional,  and  by 
private  instruction,  as  contrasted  with  the  cathedral  estab- 
lishment on  the  north  of  the  river.  Attached  to  the  latter 
are  a  dean  and  fifty  prebendaries,  twelve  being  "  resident'' 
canons  ;  who  receive  the  ample  endowments  of  the  church 
in  trust  for  performing  a  corresponding  amount  of  duty, 
public  and  oral.  Yet  these  unfaithful  stewards  not  only 
keep  the  principal  doors  of  the  metropolitan  cathedral  closed 
against  worshippers  the  whole  year  round  (except  on  the 
occasion  of  two  exhibitions)  but  use  the  body  of  the  church 
as  a  public  show,  for  which  the  visitor — whose  right  to  it 

*  The  Rev.  Messrs.  White,  McStory,  and  Tetford. 


t  * 

352  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

at  all  hours  of  the  day  is  unquestionable — is  charged  ad- 
mission !  !  The  bishop,  it  appears,  under  our  imperfect 
canon  law,  cannot  reach  this  monstrous  abuse.  How  long- 
will  the  public  sanction  so  gross  a  perversion  of  one  of  its 
most  sacred  trusts  ? 


• 


m 


CHAPTER  LIII. 


THE    PASTORAL    LETTER. ST.    PAUL'S    CHURCH. 

During  the  meeting  of  the  General  Convention,  a  pas- 
toral letter  from  the  bishops,  addressed  to  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Church  generally  throughout  the  country,  is 
submitted  to  the  upper  house  by  the  presiding  bishop,  and 
if  approved  by  that  body,  is  read  by  him  in  an  assembly  of 
both  houses.  This  is  the  last  act  of  the  Convention  before 
breaking  up — except  the  supplemental  resolution  directing 
the  printing  of  a  large  impression  of  the  said  Letter,  to  be 
distributed  among  the  different  states  ;  when  it  is  again 
read  in  every  parish  church.  The  bishops  wait  for  a  no- 
tice from  the  other  chamber  that  they  are  ready  to  hear  the 
Pastoral  Letter,  when  they  adjourn  thither,  and  occupy  the 
chancel  end  of  the  church. 

Such  was  the  order  observed  on  this  occasion  ;  as  the 
patriarchal  Griswold  for  the  second  and  last  time  presided 
in  the  council  of  that  Church  of  which  he  had  long  been 
the  brightest  ornament.  The  interest  of  the  scene  reached 
its  height  when  the  presiding  bishop  rose  in  his  place  in  the 
centre  of  the  episcopal  group,  and  commenced  the  Pastoral 
Letter.  The  following  digest  will  give  the  reader  a  suffi- 
cient conception  of  the  usual  character  of  this  triennial  doc- 
ument, and  exhibit  its  most  reverend  author  as  a  true  cath- 
olic and  a  sound  divine : — 

"Brethren  and  friends,  beloved  in  the  lord: 
"  It  again  becomes  the  duty  of  your  bishops,  being  as- 
23 


354        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

sembled  with  your  clerical  and  lay  deputies  in  General 
Convention,  and  at  their  request,  to  address  to  you  a  Pas- 
toral Letter  on  the  state  of  our  Churches  [diocesses]. 

"  Since  the  last  meeting  of  this  Convention,  it  has  pleased 
the  Lord,  in  his  merciful  goodness,  to  continue  them  gen- 
erally in  a  state  of  prosperity  and  increase.  But  with  deep 
feelings  of  sorrow  we  find  another  vacant  seat  in  our  House. 
We  have  to  lament  the  decease  of  our  much  respected 
brother,  the  Right  Rev.  Nathaniel  Bowen,  D.D.,  who,  in 
the  midst  of  his  useful  labours,  departed  this  life  on  the 
25th  of  August,  1839. 

"  Still,  in  the  midst  of  judgment,  the  Lord  remembers 
mercy.  We  are  happy  in  being  able  to  report,  that  through 
his  goodness,  no  less  than  six  others  have  been  added  to  our 
number.  The  Right  Rev.  Leonidas  Polk,  D.D.,  was  con- 
secrated to  the  episcopal  office  in  1838,  as  Missionary 
Bishop  of  the  South  West,  having  for  his  jurisdiction,  Ar- 
kansas, and  some  part  of  the  Indian  Territory,  with  the 
provisional  supervisions  of  the  diocesses  of  Alabama  and 
Louisiana.  And  at  the  request  of  our  Foreign  Missionary 
Committee,  he  has  extended  his  visitations  to  the  republic 
of  Texas,  of  which  we  have  been  favoured  with  interesting 
information. 

"  The  Right  Rev.  William  H.  Delancey,  D.D.,  was  con- 
secrated Bishop  of  Western  New- York,  on  the  9th  of  May, 
1839 :  under  whose  administration  that  new  diocess  is 
highly  prosperous. 

"  The  Right  Rev.  Christopher  E.  Gadsden,  D.D.,  the  suc- 
cessor to  our  much  lamented  brother,  Bishop  Bowen,  was 
ordained  to  the  episcopate  of  South  Carolina,  on  the  21st  of 
June,  1840. 

"The  Right  Rev.  Wm.  R.  Whittingham,  D.D.,  was  con- 
secrated Bishop  of  the  Diocess  of  Maryland,  September 
17th,  1840, 


THE    PASTORAL    LETTER.  355 

"  The  Right  Rev.  Stephen  Elliott,  Jim.,  D.D.,  was,  on 
the  2Sth  of  February  last,  ordained  Bishop  of  Georgia. 

"  And  during  the  session  of  this  Convention,  the  Rev. 
Alfred  Lee,  D.D.,  has  been  ordained  Bishop  of  Delaware. 

"  You  will,  we  doubt  not,  rejoice  with  us,  and  bless  God 
for  these  additions  to  our  apostolic  ministry  ;  and  that  they 
have  been  made  with  unanimity,  and  to  the  great  satisfac- 
tion of  the  Churches  over  which  they  are  appointed  to  pre- 
side ;  and  for  the  lively  hope  which  we  already  have,  that 
the  work  of  God  will  prosper  in  their  hands.  Our  brethren, 
now  in  all  parts  of  the  United  States,  have  the  benefit  of 
episcopal  supervision. 

"  We  would  again  '  write  unto  you  of  the  common  salva- 
tion' which  is  in  Jesus  Christ,  '  and  exhort  you,  that  you 
should  earnestly  contend  for  the  faith  which  was  once,'  by 
inspiration  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  '  delivered  unto  the  saints,' 
and  faithfully  perform  those  things  which  are  required  in 
the  word  of  God,  that  we  may  obtain  eternal  life. 

'•'The  religion  taught  us  in  the  holy  Scriptures  maybe 
included  under  two  heads  : — What  we  must  believe,  and 
what  we  must  do.  Under  the  former  head  is  included  a 
belief  in  all  things  respecting  our  religious  hope,  and  final 
salvation,  which  are  revealed  to  our  understanding  in  God's 
holy  word  ;  such  as  the  creation  and  fall  of  man  ;  the  char- 
acter of  the  Saviour,  and  what  he  has  done  to  redeem  us 
from  sin  and  eternal  death ;  the  merits  and  other  doctrines 
of  his  cross  ;  the  institution  and  nature  of  his  Church  and 
its  Ministry  :  the  number  and  efficacy  of  his  Sacraments  ; 
the  persons  of  the  Deity  ;  the  agency  of  the  Divine  Spirit ; 
and  the  light  and  immortality  brought  to  light  in  the  Gos- 
pel, which  his  ministers  are  sent  to  preach.  These  are 
among  the  principle  things  which  we  are  to  believe,  and 
which  are  essential  to  that  faith  which  is  required  of  those 
who  would  have  a  sure  hope  of  salvation  in  Jesus  Christ. 


356        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

"  But  the  great  practical  question  for  those  who  have  this 
faith ;  the  question,  which,  in  different  forms,  was  often  put 
to  Christ,  and  his  apostles,  and  which  his  ministers  still 
should  be  willing  and  prepared  to  answer  to  all  who  ask  it, 
and  to  all  who  have  ears  to  hear,  is,  What  must  we  do  to 
be  saved  ?  This,  in  the  same  Scriptures,  we  are  clearly 
and  so  fully  taught,  '  that  whatsoever  is  not  read  therein, 
nor  may  be  proved  thereby,  is  not  to  be  required  of  any 
man,  that  it  should  be  believed  as  an  article  of  faith,  or  be 
thought  requisite  or  necessary  to  salvation.' 

"  Our  Church  has  taught  in  her  catechism  what  are  '  the 
first  principles  of  the  doctrines  of  Christ,'  and  in  her  articles 
and  homilies,  what  is  most  necessary  to  the  obtaining  of  a 
sure  hope  of  salvation  in  Jesus  Christ,  and  to  the  perfection 
of  the  Christian  character.  The  more  carefully  you,  as 
Christ  commands,  '  search  the  Scriptures,'  the  more  will 
you  see  and  have  cause  to  admire  the  wisdom  and  piety 
of  those  holy  men,  who  were  instrumental  in  reforming  the 
Church  of  England,  and  who  compiled,  on  true  scriptural 
grounds,  Articles  of  Faith,  and  a  Book  of  Common  Prayer. 
Since  this  branch  of  the  one  catholic  and  apostolic  Church, 
to  which  we  have  the  happiness  to  belong,  became  inde- 
pendent of  the  Church  of  England  in  its  ecclesiastical  pol- 
ity, our  fathers  of  the  American  Episcopal  Church,  as  we 
may  now  well  call  them,  made  some  few  alterations  and 
Improvements,  that  our  worship  and  discipline  may  be  better 
adapted  to  the  state  of  this  country,  and  the  manners  of  the 
age ;  but,  as  you  may  easily  see,  they  have  carefully  ad- 
hered to  the  sure  word  of  God. 

"  But  though  all  Christians  may  agree  that  our  religion 
is  included  under  two  heads : — what  are  we  required  to 
believe,  and  what  to  do,  that  we  may  be  saved  in  Jesus 
Christ  ? — on  the  comparative  importance  of  these  two  parts, 
and  what  influence  they  have  in  our  justification  and  ac- 


THE    PASTORAL    LETTER.  357 

ceptance  with  God,  there  is  unhappily  some  diversity  of 
opinion,  to  which  we  deem  it  expedient  to  ask  your  attention. 
Many  Christians,  indeed,  seem  to  find  some  difficulty  in  rec- 
onciling or  in  clearly  understanding  what  the  Scriptures 
teach  of  faith  and  of  works.  To  remove  any  doubts  or  un- 
certainty of  this  kind  must  evidently  be  of  high  importance. 

"  The  principle  or  ground  on  which  we  are  accepted  of 
God,  and  may  hope  to  be  blest  in  Heaven  as  righteous  in 
his  sight,  is  what  chiefly  distinguishes  Christian  theology 
from  all  other  religions.  On  the  much  controverted  ques- 
tion, what  influence  our  works  have  in  our  justification, 
some  have  erroneously  thought,  that  the  apostles  even  are 
not  wholly  agreed  ;  as  when  one  l  concludes  that  a  man  is 
justified,  and  not  by  faith  only.'  But  not  only  are  the  apos- 
tles, on  this  momentous  doctrine,  agreed ;  but  among 
Christians,  truly  pious,  the  difference  is  probably  less  than 
is  generally  supposed. 

"  The  Scriptures  teach  us  that  man  is  naturally  in  a  fall- 
en, sinful  state,  from  which  God,  in  his  merciful  goodness, 
sent  his  Son  to  redeem  us.  By  the  sacrifice  of  himself,  he 
made  expiation  for  our  sins  ;  by  rising  from  the  dead,  he 
has  raised  our  hopes  to  life  immortal ;  and  through  faith  in 
him,  as  '  the  way,  the  truth,  and  the  life  ;'  as  our  advocate 
with  the  Father,  and  '  the  end  of  the  law  for  righteousness 
to  those  who  believe,'  we  are  authorized  to  look  for  pardon 
and  acceptance. 

"  This  is  indeed  an  '  unspeakable  gift ;'  it  is  a  work  of 
mercy  and  grace  which  passes  man's  understanding,  and 
that  Christians  of  honest  hearts  and  sincere  piety  should 
have  views  somewhat  different  respecting  what  is  required 
of  men,  that  they  may  obtain  the  salvation  offered  us  in  the 
gospel,  is  a  matter  of  regret  rather  than  of  surprise.  Re- 
specting the  councils  of  God  in  the  vast  work  of  redemption, 
we  know  in  part  only,  and  can  prophecy  but  in  part.     In 


358  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

that  plan  of  Divine  love  which  clothed  '  the  Lord  from 
Heaven '  in  human  flesh,  there  are  depths  of  wisdom  and 
knowledge,  which  no  genius  of  man  can  in  this  life  wholly 
investigate,  nor  human  reason  fathom.  God  is  graciously 
pleased  to  reveal  to  our  understanding,  what  is  necessary 
for  us  to  know  during  this  present  life  ;  and  with  this 
should  we  be  contented,  and  for  it  thankful ;  not  indulging 
any  presumptuous  curiosity,  nor  pretending  to  be  wise  be- 
yond what  is  written  for  our  learning. 

"  They  who  carefully  read  the  Holy  Scriptures,  cannot 
be  ignorant  that  salvation  is  of  grace ; — that  it  is  not  of 
works,  lest  any  man  should  boast,  and  that  we  are  justified 
through  faith  in  the  redemption  that  is  in  Jesus  Christ. 
Nor  is  it  less  evident  that  we  are  required  to  work  oat  our 
salvation, — to  save  ourselves, — to  make  our  calling"  and 
election  sure.  These,  and  other  like  passages,  all  apper- 
tain to  the  sure  Word  of  God,  and  that  is  their  true  sense 
which  reconciles  them,  and  shows  their  agreement  with 
each  other,  and  with  the  whole  of  the  sacred  volume. 

"  In  searching  the  Scriptures,  our  great  desire  should  be 
to  know  what  God  has  taught,  uninfluenced  by  what  we 
may  prefer,  and  without  any  attempt  to  circumscribe  '  the 
power  of  God  and  the  wisdom  of  God '  within  the  narrow 
limits  of  our  own  understanding.  If  we  search  the  Scrip- 
tures for  texts  or  for  arguments  to  confirm  what  appears  to 
us  the  most  reasonable,  or  what  we  have  already  adopted 
as  our  opinions,  we  shall  be  less  likely  to  come  to  the 
knowledge  of  '  all  the  counsel  of  God.'  Sincere  and  pious 
Christians,  by  regarding  chiefly,  (what  certainly  merits  very 
much  regard)  the  gratuitous  dispensations  of  God's  mercy 
in  Christ, — the  hopeless,  spiritual  state  of  fallen  man, — the 
predominance  of  his  selfish,  worldly,  and  carnal  affections, 
— and  many  passages  of  God's  word,  which  speak  of  our 
works  as  unprofitable  to  God,  and  in  his  sight  without  merit, 


THE    PASTORAL    LETTER.  359 

may  naturally  be  led  to  make  too  little  account  of  good  liv- 
ing, and  of  what  we  must  do  to  be  saved.  A  simple  belief 
in  the  merits  of  Christ  may  be  so  relied  upon,  as  to  '  make 
void  the  law  through  faith.'  *  *  *  It  appears  that  St. 
Paul's  remarks  on  the  doctrines  of  grace,  were  misunder- 
stood in  his  day,  as  they  also  have  been  in  ours.  They 
were  considered,  St.  Peter  says,  as  hard  to  be  understood, 
and  were  wrested  from  their  true  sense  to  the  support  of 
error.  We  have  also  reason  to  believe  that  others  of  the 
apostles,  as  St.  Peter  and  St.  James,  St.  John  and  St.  Jude, 
designed,  in  their  epistles,  to  rectify  the  erroneous  notions 
which  some  Christians  even  then  began  to  entertain  respect- 
ing the  necessity  of  godly  living  ;  '  to  vindicate,  (as  St. 
Augustine  says,)  the  true  doctrine  from  the  false  conse- 
quences charged  upon  it,  and  to  shew  that  faith  without 
works  is  nothing  worth.'  St.  James,  in  his  bold  manner 
and  strong  language,  speaks  very  decidedly  on  this  point ; 
— he  shews  the  dangerous  error  of  supposing  that  a  mere 
belief  in  Christ  rendered  the  works,  which  God's  word  re- 
quires of  believers,  unnecessary,  or  that  we  can  have  a  good 
hope  of  being  saved  in  Christ,  while  we  neglect  what 
Christ  himself  commands. 

"  Faith  is  required  not  as  a  substitute  for  good  living, 
but  rather  as  necessary  to  our  living  according  to  the  word 
and  will  of  God.  The  works  which  the  gospel  of  Christ  re- 
quires, that  men  may  be  saved,  they  cannot,  or  certainly 
they  would  not  perform  without  a  belief  in  him  as  their 
Saviour.  Who  could  truly  pray  in  the  name  of  Christ ;  or 
in  his  name,  and  from  love  to  him,  give  a  cup  of  water,  if 
he  does  not  believe  in  him  ?  Who  could  truly  pray  in  the 
name  of  Christ,  or  in  his  name,  and  from  love  to  him,  give  a 
cup  of  water,  if  he  does  not  believe  in  him  ?  St.  James 
teaches  what  St.  Paul  taught,  that  we  do  not  through  faith 
make  void  the  law.     The  unprofitableness  of  faith  without 


360  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

submission  to  God's  righteousness,  he  illustrates  by  the  case 
of  one  who  should  give  the  needy  nothing  but  fair  words 
and  empty  wishes  ;  '  Be  ye  warmed  and  clothed.'  There 
is  no  more  of  true  justifying  faith,  in  believing  the  Scrip- 
tures to  be  the  Word  of  God,  while  we  live  in  the  neglect 
of  what  they  teach,  than  there  is  of  charity  in  knowing  the 
wants  of  the  poor,  while  we  refuse  or  neglect  to  relieve 
them.  St.  James  teaches  us  that  the  faith  which  justifies, 
is  a  living  faith,  fruitful  of  good  works  :  it  is  that  faith  of 
the  heart,  by  which  '  man  believeth  unto  righteousness.' 
St.  Paul  teaches  the  same  doctrine  when  he  says,  '  Though 
I  have  all  faith,  so  that  I  could  remove  mountains,  and 
have  not  charity,  I  am  nothing.'  And  again,  '  If  ye  live 
according  to  the  flesh,  ye  shall  die  ;  but  if  ye,  through  the 
Spirit,  do  mortify  the  deeds  of  the  body,  ye  shall  live.'  Our 
Saviour  teaches  this  doctrine  when  he  says,  '  Not  every  one 
that  says  unto  me,  Lord,  Lord,  shall  enter  into  the  kingdom 
of  Heaven,  but  he  that  doeth  the  will  of  my  Father.'  And 
St.  Peter  says  to  the  same  purpose, '  It  is  better  not  to  know 
the  way  of  righteousness,  than  having  known  it,  to  turn 
from  the  holy  commandment.'  He  shews  the  necessity  of 
adding  to  our  faith,  virtue,  knowledge,  temperance,  patience, 
godliness,  brotherly-kindness,  charity  '  If — he  says,  ye  do 
these  things,  ye  shall  never  fall.' 

"A  careful  study  of  the  holy  Scriptures,  with  prayer, 
will  convince  you  of  their  perfect  harmony  and  agreement 
on  the  doctrine  of  faith  and  works.  You  have  but  to  ob- 
serve well  in  what  sense  we  are  justified  by  faith  only ; 
and  also  how  it  is  that  good  living  is  essential  to  our  salva- 
tion in  Christ.  By  the  apostles  St.  Paul  and  St.  James,  you 
are  warned  of  two  opposite  errors.  By  the  former  you  are 
taught  not  to  rely  on  any  works  which  you  do,  as  profita- 
ble to  salvation,  but,  such  as  are  wrought  in  a  Christian 
faith ;  while  the  other  shows  that  faith,  without  the  works 


THE    PASTORAL    LETTER.  361 

which  the  gospel  requires  is  unavailing.  This  doctrine  he 
had  learned  from  his  Divine  Master,  who  was  careful  to 
teach  that  the  tree  is  known  by  its  fruits ;  that  the  man 
whose  heart  is  truly  renewed  by  a  lively  faith  in  Christ, 
will  shew  it  by  his  submission  to  God's  righteousness;  '  will 
shew  his  faith  by  his  works.'  *  *  *  This  doctrine  of 
faith  and  works  you  may  find  to  be  fully  taught  and  sus- 
tained in  the  Articles  and  Liturgy,  and  in  all  the  standards 
of  our  Church.  She  has  taken  the  true  mean  or  middle 
way  between  the  two  opposite  extremes,  and  is  careful  to 
teach  you  not  to  turn  to  the  right  hand  or  to  the  left.  *   *  * 

"  This  subject  rightly  considered  will  teach  you  profita- 
bly to  use  the  means  of  grace.  Because  circumcision 
now  avails  nothing  you  must  not  infer  that  the  Christian 
ordinances  are  of  but  little  importance — that  without  peril 
to  your  soul  you  may  neglect  Baptism,  or  Confirmation,  or 
the  Lord's  Supper,  or  Prayer.  By  a  right  use  of  these 
means,  as  our  Church  teaches,  and  the  Scriptures  teach, 
your  faith  will  be  strengthened  and  grace  increased.  God 
has  commanded  the  use  of  them,  and  they  who  neglect  them 
must  either  think  that  they  are  wiser  than  God,  or  they 
must  be  in  want  of  that  faith  which  produces  obedience  to 
his  commands. 

The  ordinances  appointed  by  our  Saviour  Christ  and 
administered  by  his  apostles,  should  not  be  viewed  merely 
as  duties,  but  rather  as  blessed  privileges  which  claim  our 
thankfulness  to  God.  In  mercy  to  mankind  and  to  help 
our  infirmities  they  are  given  us  as  sanctified  means  of 
bringing  us  to  himself  and  by  tohich  we  may  obtain  his 
heavenly  benediction. 

"Your  bishops  ask  your  attention  to  this  subject  the 
rather,  because,  in  our  visitation  of  the  Churches  under  our 
care,  we  are  often  and  much  pained  in  observing  how  large 
a  part  of  the  people  of  our  congregations  appear  to  be  in 


362        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

doubt,  or  undecided  respecting  the  use  of  these  means ;  how 
many  of  them  live  in  the  neglect  of  making  an  open  and 
public  profession  of  their  faith  in  Christ  and  submission  to 
his  righteousness ;  and  this  we  the  more  regret,  from  con- 
sidering that  not  a  few  of  them  manifest  a  sincere  regard 
for  religion  and  a  serious  sense  of  its  importance.  Their 
morals,  too,  and  their  lives  in  other  respects,  are,  in  a  happy 
degree,  such  as  we  desire  to  see  in  the  disciples  of  Christ. 
They  appeared  to  have  a  reverence  for  God  and  right  views 
of  the  Saviour's  character  and  office  ;  and  they  shew  such 
benevolence  and  charity  towards  their  fellow  men,  that  we 
may  say  of  thousands  what  Christ  said  to  one,  "  They  are 
not  far  from  the  kingdom  of  God."  Our  sorrow  is  that 
they  are  not  visibly  in  his  Kingdom.  For  reasons  known 
perhaps  to  themselves  and  to  God  only,  they  do  not  confess 
Christ  before  men  and  become  members  of  his  Church. 
While  they  so  continue  they  are  not  assured  of  God's  fa- 
vour and  goodness  towards  them,  "  and  that  they  are  mem- 
bers incorporate  in  the  mystical  body  of  his  Son,  which  is 
the  blessed  company  of  all  faithful  people."  Into  a  Church 
so  apostolic  as  this,  having  a  faith  so  primitive,  doctrines  so 
evangelical,  a  worship  so  scriptural,  and  other  institutions 
so  truly  liberal,  we  might  reasonably  hope  to  see  people 
crowding  as  doves  to  their  windows. 

"Our  Saviour  Christ  sent  his  ministers  to  preach,  'He 
that  believeth  and  is  baptized,  shall  be  saved ;'  and  so  far 
as  we  know  of  their  acts  and  their  history,  they  who  did  be- 
lieve immediately  made  that  profession  of  their  faith.  It 
is  also  evident  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  that  they  con- 
firmed baptized  believers  by  laying  their  hands  upon  them, 
and  praying  for  the  aid  of  God's  Holy  Spirit  to  strengthen 
them  in  the  performance  of  their  baptismal  engagements, 
and  enable  them  to  '  lead  the  rest  of  their  lives  according  to 
that  beginning.'     And  it  is  the  request  and  the  command 


THE    PASTORAL    LETTER.  363 

of  your  Saviour  that  you  receive  the  other  sacrament  in  re- 
membrance of  him,  in  a  thankful  and  devout  commemora- 
tion of  his  'one  sacrifice  for  sin.'  In  that  sacrament  you 
shew  forth  his  death — you  manifest  your  faith  in  the  mer- 
its of  his  cross,  and  your  thankfulness  for  such  unspeaka- 
ble mercy.  By  faithfully  receiving  these  memorials  of  hi3 
love,  you  are  also  authorized  to  hope  for  the  strengthening 
of  your  souls  by  the  spiritual  efficacy  of  his  body  and  blood, 
broken  and  shed  for  your  sins,  as  your  bodies  are  by  the 
bread  and  wine. 

"  Some  seem  to  think  that  the  rivers  of  Damascus  are 
better  than  the  waters  of  Israel,  or  that  if  they  live  honest 
and  good  lives  they  shall  not  be  the  worse  for  neglecting 
religious  ceremonies.  And  who  does  truly  live  an  honest 
and  good  life  1  Who  loves  God  with  all  his  heart  and  soul 
and  mind,  and  his  neighbour  as  himself?  Who  has  in  all 
things  done  to  others  as  he  would  have  others  do  to  him '.' 
In  many  things  we  all  offend  :  there  is  none  good  but  one. 
Christ  died  to  save,  and  his  gospel  is  sent  to  call  '  not  the 
righteous  but  sinners.'  Are  you  so  whole,  that  you  need 
not  this  Divine  Physician  ?  We  might  remind  you  of  the 
inestimable  benefits,  visibly  signed  and  sealed  in  Baptism 
to  those  who  rightly  receive  it.  We  might  say  much  to 
you  of  the  fitness  and  Divine  authority  of  Confirmation,  and 
the  blessings  which  have  evidently  attended  its  right  and 
faithful  ministration.  We  might  shew  that  commu- 
ning in  the  Lord's  Supper  is  a  great  comfort  to  those  who 
believe  in  Christ,  and  that  it  strengthens  them  much  in 
their  Christian  zeal. — But  is  it  not  enough  to  know  that 
it  is  the  will  of  your  Saviour  Christ  that  you  should  submit 
to  his  ordinances  ? — that  he,  who  so  loved  your  soul  as  to 
die  for  its  salvation,  has  appointed  his  sacraments  for  your 
benefit  ?  Such  a  Saviour,  you  may  well  believe,  has  not 
ordained  rites  which  are  unnecessary,  or  which  may  safely 


364        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

be  neglected  ;  nor  has  he  required  you  to  do  that  which  is 
useless.  Our  wisdom,  when  opposed  to  God's  word,  is  but 
foolishness  !  He  has  '  chosen  the  foolish  things  of  the 
world  to  confound  the  mighty.'  When  some  inquired  of 
Christ,  '  What  shall  we  do  that  we  might  work  the  works 
of  God  ;  he  answered  and  said  unto  them,  This  is  the 
work  of  God,  that  ye  believe  on  him  whom  he  hath  sent.' 
We  are  to  believe  in  him  as  the  great  Prophet — as  the 
word  or  wisdom  of  God,  by  whom  the  Divine  will  is  made 
known  to  men  ;  and  as  the  only  true  Priest  who  has  made 
expiation  for  our  sins,  and  ever  lives  to  make  intercession 
for  us.  '  Through  him  we  have  access,  by  one  Spirit,  unto 
the  Father.'  And  we  are  to  believe  in  him  as  our  King, 
unto  whom  all  power  was  given  in  heaven  and  earth.  Him 
we  are  bound  in  all  things  to  obey.  He  is  '  made  both 
Lord  and  Christ ;'  and  well  may  he  ask,  as  he  does.  '  Why 
call  ye  me  Lord,  Lord,  and  do  not  the  things  which  I  say  V 
While  we  disobey  his  commands,  by  our  actions  we  deny 
that  he  is  Lord ;  we  rebel  against  him.  *  *  *  We  '  be- 
seech you  then,  brethren,  suffer  the  word  of  exhortation.' 
Consider  well  what  you  must  do  to  be  saved  ; — how  great 
is  the  peril  of  halting  between  two  opinions,  and  of  neglect- 
ing this  great  salvation.  We  would  be  ever  cautious  not 
to  encourage  an  undue  reliance  on  religious  rites ;  but  with- 
out the  use  of  those  which  God  has  graciously  appointed  for 
our  use,  how  can  we  hope  to  increase  in  grace  and  in  god- 
liness of  living  ?  '  Except  a  man  be  born  of  Water  and  of 
the  Spirit,  he  cannot  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God.'  We 
know  well  that  you  cannot  change  your  own  hearts ; — that 
God  alone  can  renew  a  right  spirit  within  you.  But  he 
has  promised  to  bless  your  sincere  efforts  to  know  and  to 
do  his  will.  '  Ask  and  you  shall  receive ;  seek  and  you 
shall  find.'  While  you  are  faithful  to  do  what  he  com- 
mands, you  may  humbly  hope  that  he  will  enlighten  your 


THE    PASTORAL    LETTER.  365 

mind,  and  sanctify  your  affections.  To  him  that  hath  shall 
be  given.  To  those  who  '  order  their  conversation  right, 
shall  be  shewn  the  salvation  of  God.' 

"  The  Kingdom  of  God,  or  his  Church,  is  the  spiritual 
ark,  which  Christ,  the  true  Noah,  has  prepared  for  the  sav- 
ing of  his  house  ;  and  your  safety  requires  that  you  be  not 
only  '  not  far  from,'  but  in  it.     The  promise  of  salvation  is 
to  those  who  are  within  its  pale.     The  sense  in  which,  as 
St.  Peter  says, '  Baptism  now  saves  us,'  is,  its  being  ordained 
of  Christ,  as  the  entrance  into  this  spiritual  ark,  where  we 
are  entitled  to  all  the  means  of  grace,  and,  if  we  are  faith- 
ful in  the  use  of  them,  to  all  the  promises  to  those  who  are 
'  members  of  Christ,  children  of  God,  and  inheritors  of  the 
kingdom  of  Heaven."     As  our  Church  teaches,—'  They  that 
receive  baptism  rightly,  are  grafted   into  the  Church,  and 
the  promises  of  forgiveness  of  sin,  and  of  our  adoption  to  be 
the  sons  of  God,  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  are  visibly  signed  and 
sealed.1     We  should  use  this  and  the  other  Christian  ordi- 
nances as  a  manifestation  of  our  faith  in  Christ,  of  our  trust 
in  his  merits,  of  our  hope  in  the  promises  of  God,  and  of 
our  submission  to  his  righteousness.     In  the  right  use  of 
them  there  is  great  comfort ;  for  they  are  tokens  of  his  love 
of  our  souls,   and  of  what  he  has   done   to   save   them. 
They  are  sanctified  means,  of  God's  appointment,  whereby 
we  may  draw  nigh  to  him  in  full  assurance  of  faith,  and 
obtain  his  heaveuly  benediction.     Where  these  ordinances 
are   devoutly  and   faithfully  observed,  we  may  well  hope 
that  true  religion  is  increasing.     It  is  encouraging  to  all 
who  love  the  gates  of  Zion  to  see  multitudes  thus  openly 
confessing  the  name  of  Christ;  coming  to  Baptism,  and 
bringing  their   children;    renewing  in   Confirmation  their 
Christian  covenant,  and  regularly  communing  in  the  Lord's 
Supper.     '  For  with  the  heart  man  believeth  unto  right- 


36G  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

eousness,  and  with  the  mouth  confession  is  made  unto  sal- 
vation.' 

This  paper  is  signed  by  the  presiding  bishop  on  behalf  of 
the  whole  episcopal  bench. 

St.  Paul's  chapel,  in  which  this  Convention  was  held,  is 
(since  the  removal  of  old  Trinity)  the  oldest  church  edifice 
in  the  City  of  New  York.  It  was  erected  by  the  vestry  of 
Trinity  parish  (to  which  it  is  attached)  anterior  to  the  Rev- 
olutionary war,  and  was  first  opened  for  divine  service  in 
1766,  the  clergy  on  the  parish  then  being,  Dr.  Samuel 
Auchmuty,  rector ;  and  Mr.  Charles  Inglis,  A.  M.  (now 
Bishop  of  Nova  Scotia,)  and  Dr.  John  Ogilvie  assistant 
ministers.  "  It  is,"  writes  Mr.  Henry  M.  Onderdonk,  in  his 
History  of  the  New  York  parishes,  and  church  edifices,  "  a 
very  imposing,  spacious,  and  handsome  edifice,  constructed 
of  grey  stone,  principally  of  the  Corinthian  order  of  architec- 
ture, and  is  one  of  the  richest  ornaments  of  our  city.  Its 
foundations  were  commenced  in  1764,  and  when  completed 
in  1766,  its  interior  arrangements  differed  somewhat  from 
the  present,  and  a  small  and  ill-proportioned  dome  occupied 
the  place  of  the  steeple,  which  now  adds  so  much  to  the 
harmony  and  beauty  of  the  view.  The  walls  are  thick  and 
massive,  and  form  a  parallelogram.  On  the  front  facing 
Broadway,  a  portico  composed  of  four  columns  of  the  Ro- 
man Ionic  style,  supporting  a  well  proportioned  pediment, 
extends  from  the  building  to  the  depth  of  eighteen  feet  and 
a  half,  which,  with  the  tower  projection  of  seven  feet  and 
six  inches,  and  the  addition  of  the  tower-portico  of  thirteen 
feet,  make  the  extreme  length  of  the  edifice  out  to  out,  one- 
hundred  and  fifty-one  feet.  The  pediment  which  rests 
upon  the  columns  above  mentioned,  is  ornamented  by 
handsome  projecting  cornices,  and  by  two  circular  windows, 
with  a  niche  midway  between  them,  containing  a  richly 
carved  colossal  figure  of  St.  Paul,  leaning  on  a  sword.     Be- 


st.  Paul's  church.  367 

neath  the  pediment  a  large  altar  window  of  three  compart- 
ments, the  centre  of  which  runs  in  an  arch,  and  is  separ- 
ated from  its  latterals  by  two  Ionic  pilasters,  gives  light  to 
the  chancel,  and  is  the  most  striking  feature  of  the  east 
front.     In  the  middle  of  this  window,  a  monument  sculp- 
tured  in   basso-relievo,  erected  to    the   memory  of  Major 
General  R.  Montgomery,  bears  an  appropriate  inscription. 
With  the  exception  of  the  pediment,  and  portico,  but  little 
or  no  ornament  decorates  the  main  body  of  the  church. 
The  sides  are  perfectly  plain,  being  constructed  of  dark 
grey  stone,  without  buttresses,  or  any  other  projection,  ex- 
cept the  sills  and  architraves  of  the  windows,  and  a  contin- 
uous line  of  brown  stone  between  the  first  and  second 
stories.     The  windows  number  fourteen  on  a  side,  and  are 
arranged  in  two  tiers  of  seven  each,  the  lower  ones  light- 
ing the  aisles,  and  the  upper  ones  the  galleries.     A  balus- 
trade divided  every  ten  feet  by  a  pedestal,  supporting  an 
urn,  extends  along  the  roof,  above  the  side  wall*,  from  the 
western  extremity  of  the  structure,  to  the  front  of  the  pedi- 
ment.    The  tower  rises  to  the  height  of  one  hundred  feet, 
and  is  built  of  stone,  similar  to  that  used  for  the  rest  of 
the  building.     It  is  divided,  above  the  roof,   into  two  sec- 
tions, the  lower  one,  with  the  exception  of  rusticated  cor- 
ners, being  perfectly  plain,  and  the  upper  one,  having  antse, 
or  pilasters  on  the  angles,  and  two  Ionic  columns  in  the 
centre,  supporting  a  small  pediment,  over  which,  between 
two  inverted  consoles,  is  the  dial  of  the  clock.     The  steeple 
rises  from  the  tower  to  the  top  of  the  vane,  one  hundred 
and  three  feet,  making  it,  in  connection  with  the  tower,  two 
hundred  and   three  feet  from  the  ground.     This   steeple, 
which  is  not  surpassed  for  beauty  of  appearance,  and  fine 
proportions  by  any  in  the  city,  or  even  in  the  country,  was 
erected  subsequently  to  the  Revolution,  and  many  years 
after  the  completion  of  the  remainder  of  the  edifice.     As  be- 


368  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

fore  stated,  it  occupies  the  place  of  a  small  and  ill-shaped 
dome,  in  former  times  a  covering  for  the  tower,  and,  with 
the  exception  of  the  section  containing  the  clock,  is  mod- 
elled [like  many  other  parts  of  the  building]  after  the  steeple 
of  St.  Martin's  church,  Trafalgar-square,  London. 

"  The  interior  of  St.  Paul's  for  general  effect,  and  happy 
harmony,  will  yield  to  that  of  no  other  church  in  the  city 
of  New- York,  excepting  Trinity.  In  entering  the  edifice  a 
richness  of  appearance  first  strikes  the  eye,  which,  combined 
with  a  deep  and  all-pervading  solemnity,  peculiar  to  St. 
Paul's,  brings  to  the  mind,  mingled  feelings  of  pleasure,  and 
veneration  ;  and  though  one  may  dwell  with  delight  upon 
the  handiwork  of  the  skilful  architect,  he  cannot  divest  him- 
self of  the  forcible  impression,  that  it  is  at  the  same  time, 
the  house  of  God.  A  double  range  of  columns,  in  the  rich- 
est style  of  the  Roman  Corinthian  order,  runs  the  whole 
length  of  the  church,  supporting  the  galleries,  and  the  ceil- 
ing of  the  nave.  The  capitals  of  the  columns  are  richly 
and  elaborately  carved,  after  the  usual  pattern  of  the  order 
to  which  they  belong,  and  may  be  considered  as  handsome 
specimens  of  workmanship. 

"  The  nave  is  well-proportioned,  being  thirty-nine  feet  in 
width,  ninety-two  feet  in  length,  and  sixty  feet  in  height. 
The  ceiling  above  it,  consists  of  a  simple  arch  sprung  from 
the  entablatures  of  the  columns  on  either  side.  From  the 
centres  of  the  circular  panels  upon  the  crown  are  suspended 
three  large  and  elegant  cut  glass  chandeliers.  In  the  ceil- 
ings over  the  galleries  arches  spring  from  the  entablature 
of  one  column  to  that  of  another,  and  to  a  corresponding 
entablature,  supported  by  a  very  rich  console,  on  the  side 
walls  of  the  chapel.  This  arrangement  of  arching, 
makes  a  groined  ceiling  of  regular  sections,  from  the  cen- 
tres of  which  hang  from  foliated  bosses  cut  glass  chande- 
liers. 


st.  paul's  church.  3G9 

"  The  chancel  is  situated  in  a  recess,  fifteen  feet  deep, 
separated  from  the  nave  by  a  large  arch  thrown  across  the 
body  of  the  church,  from  the  entablatures  of  two  Ionic  pi- 
lasters against  the  inner  wall  of  the  eastern  vestibules.  It 
is  raised  one  foot  and  six  inches  above  the  ground  floor,  and 
is  enclosed  by  a  richly  carved  railing  extending  between 
the  walls,  which  are  twenty-nine  feet  apart.  The  altar, 
standing  directly  under  the  great  altar  window,  is  of  wood 
handsomely  painted  in  imitation  of  stone,  and  above  it,  in 
the  centre  compartment  of  the  window,  now  curtained  with 
heavy  drapery,  are  the  two  tablets  of  the  law,  in  letters  of 
gold,  surmounted  by  rays  of  light,  proceeding  from  a  repre- 
sentation of  the  visible  manifestation  of  the  Deity  on  Mount 
Sinai.  The  walls  on  either  side  of  the  chancel  are  per- 
fectly plain,  with  the  exception  of  six  mural  monuments  of 
chaste  sculpture,  erected  at  different  times." 

The  first  of  these  monuments,  mentioned  by  Mr.  Onder- 
donk,  bears  the  arms  of  Eleanor  Huggett,  and  contains  a 
Latin  inscription.  Next  to  this,  another,  also  bearing  an 
heraldic  device  wrought  upon  an  urn  of  white  marble, 
standing  out  from  a  back  ground  of  veined  Italian  marble 
in  the  form  of  a  pyramid,  is  inscribed  a  tribute  to  the  mem- 
ory of  Mrs.  Franklin,  wife  of  the  British  governor  of  New 
Jersey,  who  died  at  the  commencement  of  the  revolutionary 
war.  On  the  opposite  side  of  the  chancel,  is  a  cenotaph  in 
memory  of  Sir  John  Temple,  containing  his  arms,  and  the 
motto  'Templa  Quam  Dilecta.''  Sir  John  was  the  first 
consul  general  sent  by  Great  Britain  to  the  United  States, 
after  the  war  of  independence.  He  died  at  New  York  in 
1798,  aged  67.  The  next  monument  contains  the  follow- 
ing inscription  : — 

24 


370  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

WITHIN    THIS    CHANCEL 

IN    CERTAIN    HOPE    OF    A    RESURRECTION    TO    GLORY 

THROUGH    JESUS    CHRIST, 

ARE    DEPOSITED   THE    REMAINS    OF 

MARGARET, 

THE    WIFE    OF 

CHARLES  INGLIS,  D.  D. 

FORMERLY    RECTOR    OF    TRINITY    PARISH    IN    THIS   CITY. 

SHE    DIED    THE    21ST    SEPTEMBER,    1783, 

AGED    THIRTY-FIVE    YEARS. 

NEAR    HER    IS    INTERRED    ALL    THAT    WAS    MORTAL,    OF 

CHARLES, 

ELDEST     SON     OF     THE     SAID     MARGARET     AND     CHARLES     INGLIS, 

WHO,    ALAS  !    AT   AN    EARLY    PERIOD    WAS  SNATCHED   AWAY 

JANUARY    THE    20TH,    1782 

IN    THE    EIGHTH    YEAR    OF    HIS    AGE. 

THE     HUSBAND     AND     THE      FATHER, 

SINCE     BECOME     BISHOP     OF     NOVA     SCOTIA, 

AS  TESTIMONY  OF  TENDEREST  AFFECTION 

TO    A    DEAR    AND    WORTHY    WIFE 

AND   ESTEEM    FOR    A    DEVOUT    CHRISTIAN  J 

AND    THE    FONDEST    REGARD 

FOR  AN  AMIABLE  SON, 

WHO,    ALTHOUGH    IN    AGE    A    CHILD, 

WAS     YET     IN     UNDERSTANDING     A     MAN, 

IN    PIETY,    A    SAINT, 

AND    IN    DISPOSITION    AN    ANGEL, 

CAUSED    THIS    MONUMENT    TO    BE    ERECTED 

IN    THE    YEAR    OF    OUR    LORD,    1788. 

There  are  two  other  monuments  in  the  chancel,  one  to 
the  memory  of  colonel  Thomas  Barclay,  son  of  the  Rev. 
Henry  Barclay,  formerly  rector  of  Trinity  parish,  and  the 
other  to  Anthony  Van  Dam,  Esq.,  grandson  of  the  Honour- 
able Rip  Van  Dam.  Upon  the  wall,  near  the  southern  ves- 
tibule door,  is  a  plain  marble  tablet  to  Thomas  Barrow,  and 


st.  Paul's  church.  371 

his  wife  Sarah,  which,  with  another  in  the  gallery  to  Chris- 
tiana, wife  of  Ceorge  W.  Chapman,  complete  the  whole 
number  contained  in  the  church. 

The  ground  floor  of  St.  Paul's  is  divided  into  four  parts, 
by  three  aisles  paved  with  tesselated  marble,  and  is  pewed 
throughout ;  the  pews  painted  in  imitation  of  mahogany. 
I  may  here  remark  that  the  pews  in  all  American  churches 
are  ?nost  properly  made  much  lower  than  in  ours.  The 
ridiculous  height  of  the  straight-backed  boxes  called  pews 
(more  properly  pens)  in  the  English  churches  where  these 
"  protestant"  nuisances  are  retained,  would  only  be  endura- 
ble if  the  evil  did  not  promise,  in  the  case  of  nearly  every 
new  erection,  to  be  perpetuated.  In  this  single  respect  we 
may  copy  very  advantageously  from  America. 

The  reading  desk  and  pulpit  face  the  centre  aisle,  which 
branches  off  to  allow  a  free  passage  around  them,  being 
several  feet  in  advance  of  the  chancel ;  and,  like  similar 
deformities  in  English  churches  of  the  same  "  orthodox" 
age,  afford  a  picturesque  protestant  screen  to  the  altar.  A 
portion  of  the  west-end  gallery  forms  the  organ  loft,  and 
contains  a  fine  toned  organ  built  in  England  nearly  fifty 
years  ago.  Above  it  are  two  smaller  galleries,  separated 
by  the  organ,  for  the  accommodation  of  the  Sunday-schol- 
ars. Behind  the  organ,  a  door  opens  into  the  second  sec- 
tion of  the  tower,  whence  stairs  ascend  into  the  steeple  ; 
which  with  the  tower,  is  two  hundred  and  three  feet  high. 
This  steeple  has  withstood  many  a  severe  gale,  and  has 
twice  been  struck  with  lightning,  each  time  the  electric 
fluid  passing  off  by  the  lightning  rod,  doing  no  further  dam- 
age, than  defacing  one  of  the  dials  of  the  clock.  The 
church  seats  about  a  thousand  persons. 

St.  Paul's  church-yard  occupies  the  whole  "  square" 
bounded  by  Broadway,  Vesey,  Church  and  Fulton  streets. 
A  square  in  America,  I  may  just  remark,  means  the  space 


372  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

ordinarily  occupied  by  a  block  of  buildings.  Thus  persons 
occupying  houses  fronting  on  a  garden  enclosure  like  Bel- 
grave,  Berkeley,  &c,  are  described  as  living  on  or  fronting 
such  or  such  a  square.  This  interesting  cemetery  is  en- 
closed on  three  sides  by  an  iron  railing,  and  on  the  fourth 
by  a  high  brick  wall,  with  entrances,  of  a  very  unpretend- 
ing character,  from  each  street.  Amongst  the  monuments 
and  tombstones,  which  are  very  numerous,  the  most  beau- 
tiful in  design  and  workmanship  is  that  of  Thomas  Addis 
Emmet.  It  is  a  white  marble  monolithe  of  thirty  feet  ele- 
vation, and  has  upon  the  face  fronting  Broadway,  a  bust 
of  "  the  patriot"  sculptured  in  basso-relievo.  It  is  inscribed 
on  three  sides  in  three  different  languages.  The  English 
inscription  was  written  by  the  Hon.  Gulian  C.  Verplanck 
of  New  York  ;  the  I  iatin  inscription  by  Dr.  John  Duer,  and 
the  inscription  in  the  Irish  language,  by  the  late  Dr.  Eng- 
land, the  Romish  "  Bishop  of  Charleston,"  South  Carolina. 
There  is  also  a  monument  of  chaste  proportions  to  the 
memory  of  the  French  General  Rochefontain,  who  fought 
in  the  Republican  army  in  the  War  of  Independence. 

The  English  reader  cannot  but  be  interested  in  even 
these  minute  particulars,  relative  to  a  spot  of  such  historical 
as  well  as  sacred  interest  as  St.  Paul's.  May  the  day  be 
not  far  distant  when  our  Trans-Atlantic  brother  catholics 
of  New  York  will  fulfil  their  long  cherished  expectations  of 
rearing  a  cathedral  church  in  the  centre  of  their  fair  city, 
whose  ample  proportions  rivalling  those  of  St.  Paul's  on 
Ludgate  Hill,  shall  form  the  distinguishing  ornament  of  the 
great  commercial  metropolis  of  the  New  World.  This 
magnificent  design,  the  great  wealth  of  Trinity  corporation 
and  the  known  liberality  of  New  York  churchmen,  renders 
by  no  means  improbable. 


CHAPTER  LIV. 

JOURNEY    TO    MICHIGAN. ROCHESTER. — LAKE    ERIE. 

As,  since  the  date  of  the  last  chapter,  I  spent  a  short  time 
in  Michigan,  the  reader  may,  perhaps,  wish  to  be  conducted 
into  that  new  and  rising  state. 

We  took  the  same  course  in  reaching  Utica,  four  hun- 
dred miles  of  our  journey,  as  when  I  accompanied  Miss 
Waylen  to  Niagara.  Here  we  entered  a  canal  boat,  and 
followed  the  Erie  canal  to  Rochester,  ninety-eight  miles  fur- 
ther, where  we  spent  a  Sunday.  Rochester  is  the  great 
northern  metropolis  of  the  state,  and  one  of  the  best  built 
cities  in  the  country,  standing  on  both  sides  the  Genessee 
river,  not  far  from  its  northern  outlet  in  Lake  Ontario ;  and 
with  a  water  power  equal  to  two  thousand  streams  of 
twenty  horse  power,  in  the  midst  of  the  finest  wheat  grow- 
ing country  in  America,  it  has  everything  to  make  it  a  great 
and  wealthy  city.  Yet  it  seems  scarcely  credible  to  the 
stranger  who  walks  its  beautiful  streets,  teeming  with  a 
busy  population,  that  in  1820  the  same  spot  was  a  poor  vil- 
lage of  fifteen  hundred  inhabitants  ! — there  are  now  twenty 
thousand !  ! 

The  Genessee  Falls  at  this  place  are  two  hundred  and  sev- 
enty-three feet  in  height.  The  view  of  these  falls  and  the 
city  in  the  background  is  beautiful  in  the  extreme.  We 
walked  for  a  mile  above  the  principal  point  of  view  by  the 
river  side,  amidst  scenery  which,  had  we  time,  would  have 
tempted  us  much  farther. 


374  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

Trinity  church  is  a  fine  English  looking  edifice  near  the 
courts  of  law  and  the  other  county  offices.  Dr.  Whitehouse, 
the  present  rector  of  this  parish,  has  held  it,  I  believe,  for 
many  years,  and  enjoys  a  good  reputation  for  his  pastoral 
diligence  and  popular  manners.  We  heard  him  officiate 
at  the  altar,  but  were  disappointed  in  our  expectations  of 
seeing  him  in  the  pulpit,  which  was  filled  by  another. 

Grace  church,  the  other  catholic  place  of  worship,  was  at 
the  time  of  my  visit  closed.  The  rector  of  the  parish  was 
a  former  friend,  and  fellow  deacon  in  Rhode  Island,  and  I 
had  anticipated  much  pleasure  in  meeting  him  amongst  his 
parishioners.  A  letter  written  with  his  usual  frankness  and 
hospitality  had  in  part  induced  me  to  take  Rochester  in  my 
route.  An  appeal  to  "  old  associations"  as  forming  an  in- 
ducement to  visit  Rochester  was  sufficiently  irresistible. 
"  This"  the  letter  added  "  is  a  country  well  worth  visiting — 
a  city  which  has  a  population  of  21,000 ;  planted  and  grown 
too  within  thirty  years  !  I  do  assure  you  a  visit  will  afford 
me  the  greatest  pleasure  imaginable,  and  you  must  hold 
forth  in  my  cathedral  church  ;— so  don't  say  me  nay,  at 
your  personal  peril  ;  come  if  you  would  retain  my  friend- 
ship— we  all,  male  and  female,  say  come? 

Who  could  "  say  nay"  to  such  a  warm  and  brotherly  in- 
vitation ? — but  what  was  my  disappointment  on  reaching 
Rochester  to  find  that  the  "  cathedral  church"  was  closed, 
and  my  good  friend  retired  from  the  city  in  consequence  of 
difficulties  with  his  parishioners. 

The  worthy  rector  of  Grace  church  was  open  handed 
and  generous  to  a  fault ;  and  having  a  private  fortune 
of  his  own  independent  of  his  parish  income,  a  design- 
ing female  in  his  congregation,  who  had  fallen  an  easy 
prey  to  a  needy  profligate,  temporarily  residing  in  the  city, 
charged  her  minister  with  her  seduction,  and  the  jury,  on 
the  most  slender  circumstantial  evidence — fully  disproved 


ROCHESTER    CHURCH    TROUBLES.  375 

by  the  statements  of  a  brother  clergyman,  and  other  wit- 
nesses of  high  character — mulcted  him  in  heavy  damages. 
An  ecclesiastical  court,  held  by  the  bishop  of  the  diocess, 
pronounced  Mr.  V— n  Z—  t  "  not  guilty,"  and  a  short  time 
after  the  plaintiff  had  pocketed  her  3000  dollars,  facts  came 
out  in  reference  to  the  case  which  fastened  the  act  on  the 
true  party,  and  re-established  Mr.  V— n  Z— t  in  the  confi- 
dence and  good  opinion  of  the  public. 

But  what  an  agony  of  mental  suffering  must  the  affair, 
in  its  whole  progress,  have  occasioned  the  persecuted  party  ! 
Besides  his  heavy  pecuniary  loss,  (which  was  the  smallest 
ingredient  in  his  cup  of  suffering,)  how  must  the  distrust  and 
desertion  of  his  flock,  and  the  odium  of  a  credulous  public, 
joined  to  the  circumstances  of  a  protracted  trial  in  an  open 
court,  have  gone  like  iron  to  the  soul  of  a  man  more  than 
ordinarily  sensitive,  and  acutely  alive  to  good  or  bad  treat- 
ment !  I  classed  it  as  another  proof  that  the  generous  and 
the  unsuspicious  in  the  Christian  community  are  the  most 
open  to  the  attacks  of  interest  or  malice. 

The  "  cathedral  church,"  as  Mr.  V— n  Z— t  was  pleased  to 
style  Grace  church,  answers  very  well  to  such  appellation  in 
the  appearance  of  some  parts  of  the  interior  of  the  edifice, 
which  displays  a  variety  of  decoration  in  carved  oak ;  "but. 
we  must  cease  to  think,"  judiciously  remarks  a  writer  in  the 
Canadian  Church,*  "  that  retiring  aisles,  and  oaken  stalls 
make  a  cathedral.  The  church  that  contains  exclusively 
the  cathedra  (chair)  of  a  bishop  is  a  cathedral  church,  just 
as  much  as  that  part  of  the  church  that  contains  the  bells 
is  the  belfry?  This  is  the  truth,  and  happily  being  under- 
stood in  the  British  colonies.  The  popular  error  that  a 
building  of  certain  proportions,  with  a  dean  and  a  chapter 
of  canons,  is  essential  to  constitute  a  cathedral  church,  pre- 

*  "The  Church,"  a  weekly  ecclesiastical  journal  of  great  ability,  published 
at  Toronto. 


376  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

vails,  however,  pretty  generally  in  the  United  States ;  though 
the  churches  belonging  to  the  American  bishops  have,  in 
fact,  more  the  character  of  the  early  Christian  cathedrals 
than  the  spacious  minsters  of  England ;  and  are  each  of 
them  as  much  "  the  eye  of  the  diocess." 

We  took  the  canal  boat  for  Buffalo,  which  place  we 
reached  in  twenty-four  hours,  having  been  conducted  by  or 
through  Ogden,  Brockport,  Albion,  Medina,  Lockport,  Pen- 
dleton and  Tonnowanto.  This  canal,  in  its  whole  length 
from  Albany  to  Buffalo,  is  three  hundred  and  sixty-five 
miles,  and  was  six  years  in  progress  ;  it  was  completed 
in  1825. 

At  Buffalo  we  took  passage  in  a  steam-boat  bound  for 
Detroit,  which  we  were  three  days  in  reaching,  owing  to 
stress  of  weather.  We  stopped  at  Dunkirk,  Erie,  Cleveland 
and  Sandusky,  on  the  Pennsylvania  and  Ohio  shores.  Erie 
was  formerly  a  French  settlement  called  Presgue  ;  the  old 
French  fortifications  still  remain.  Cleveland  is  a  well  built 
city,  situated  on  a  flat  promontory  standing  out  to  the  lake, 
the  views  of  which  are  uncommonly  fine.  Trinity  church 
was  the  only  place  of  worship  then  existing  in  Cleveland. 
Another  church  has  been  since  erected.  Sandusky  is  unat- 
tractive enough.  When  we  left  this  place  the  evening  was 
far  advanced,  and  I  lost,  on  this  occasion,  the  many  beau- 
ties which  the  approach  to  Detroit,  the  capital  of  Michigan, 
presents. 


CHAPTER  LV. 

DETROIT. BISHOP  Jl'cOSKRY. — NATURAL  FEATURES  AND 

HISTORY    OF    MICHIGAN. 

On  getting  out  of  my  berth  the  next  morning  (which  was 
Sunday)  I  found  the  boat  closely  moored  to  the  wharf  at 
Detroit,  and  nearly  deserted  of  its  passengers.  We  had 
received  an  invitation  to  the  bishop's  house,  where  we  found 
a  friendly  and  cordial  wxlcome.  Never  did  the  service  of 
the  Church  appear  more  heavenly  than  on  that  Sabbath 
morning,  in  the  beautiful  cathedral  of  Detroit.  It  was  con- 
ducted by  the  bishop's  assistant,  the  Rev.  Chauncey  W. 
Fitch,  and  the  sermon  delivered  by  the  bishop.  The  latter 
was  adapted  to  the  occasion  of  the  sacrament,  which  was 
afterwards  administered  to  several  hundred  communicants. 
In  the  evening  I  occupied  the  pulpit  myself. 

During  my  stay  in  Michigan  I  had  numerous  opportuni- 
ties of  observing  the  truth  of  another  testimony  to  Bishop 
M'Coskry's  universal  popularity.  "  One  could  hardly  de- 
sire," writes  Dr.  Clark,  ua  larger  measure  of  popularity, 
either  with  his  parish  or  in  his  diocess,  than  Bishop  M'Coskry 
enjoys.  Everywhere  the  highest  testimony  is  borne  to  the 
loveliness  and  excellency  of  his  character,  and  the  fait  b  ful- 
ness and  evangelical  spirit  of  his  ministry.  This  I  heard 
from  all  quarters — from  clergy  and  laity.  Indeed,  I  think 
the  bishop's  greatest  danger  lies  in  this  quarter."* 

Detroit  is  also  the  seat  of  a  schism atical  Romanist  bishop, 

*  Gleanings  by  the  Way. 


378  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

who  has  a  cathedral  church  of  the  most  singular  proportions 
and  general  appearance  I  have  ever  seen.  The  present 
occupant  of  the  assumed  see  was  described  to  me  by  the 
Bishop  of  Michigan,  who  lives  on  the  best  of  terms  with 
him,  as  a  very  excellent,  liberal  minded  man,  and  a  good 
public  speaker. 

It  is  a  neatly  built  city,  with  some  handsome  public  build- 
ings, and  a  noble  main  thoroughfare,  called  Jefferson  Ave- 
nue, which  is  thronged  on  a  fine  day  with  carriages  and 
light  vehicles.  A  regiment  of  the  regular  troops  was  quar- 
tering in  the  town  on  our  arrival,  which  added  considerably 
to  its  liveliness  and  gaiety. 

After  a  week  spent  under  the  bishop's  hospitable  roof, 
we  pursued  our  way  as  far  as  Jackson,  eighty  miles  west- 
ward. This  was  the  westernmost  termination  of  our  jour- 
ney, and  just  a  thousand  miles,  by  the  route  we  had  taken, 
from  Philadelphia. 

The  soil  of  Michigan  is  alluvial ;  and,  except  on  the  west 
coast,  free  of  rocks.  There  are  also  few  large  forests  like 
the  other  western  states,  and  the  climate  in  winter  is,  owing 
to  its  peninsular  form,  milder  than  it  is  to  be  found  at  sev- 
eral degrees  south.  Its  general  character  is  undulating, 
gentle  mounds  constantly  rising  on  every  side  with  groups 
of  trees,  presenting  what  are  called  "  oak  openings."  This 
appearance  is  exceedingly  pleasing  to  English  eyes,  re- 
sembling as  they  do  the  cultivated  parks  of  the  nobility  and 
gentry.  I  have  travelled  through  many  miles  of  wild  lands 
on  horseback,  every  foot  of  which  bore  this  appearance  of 
culture,  and  every  tree  looking  as  if  it  was  planted  by  the 
hand  of  taste.  Such  a  country  requires  comparatively 
little  capital  to  render  it  fit  for  the  farmer's  crops,  and  is, 
unquestionably,  the  best  for  the  settler  of  small  means. 
The  land  in  these  oak  openings  yields  heavy  crops  of  wheat 
and  barley.     Clearing  is  generally  unnecessary  at  first,  as 


MICHIGAN.  379 

by  girdling  the  trees  they  immediately  decay,  and,  having 
no  foliage,  present  little  obstruction  to  the  effect  of  the  sun's 
rays  on  the  ground.  In* this  neighbourhood  the  average 
quantity  of  grain  produced  is — of  Indian  corn,  sixty  bushels 
to  the  acre  ;  of  oats,  forty-five  ;  and  of  wheat,  twenty-five. 

Another  beautiful  feature  in  Michigan  is  the  carpet  of 
red,  yellow,  purple,  and  white  flowers,  which  everywhere 
covers  the  ground  in  summer.  Add  to  this,  a  great  number 
of  most  picturesque  lakes,  whose  banks  are  clothed  with 
verdure,  and  their  waters  filled  with  fish,  and  it  will  be 
readily  admitted  that  Michigan  is  a  very  pretty  country. 
And  such  it  is — Unlike  the  other  western  states,  every  part 
of  it,  except  the  newly  built  towns  and  villages,  looks,  but 
for  the  odious  rail  fence,  like  an  old  well  cultivated  country. 
That  a  few  years  will  see  it  a  very  wealthy  and  populous 
state,  no  one  who  has  visited  it,  or  is  acquainted  with  its  re- 
sources and  the  enterprize  and  industry  of  its  inhabitants, 
can  doubt. 

Michigan  has  had  several  masters.  It  was  first  settled 
by  the  French  in  September  1641 ;  the  shores  were  visited 
by  Jesuit  missionaries,  several  of  whom  paid  the  penalty  of 
their  lives  in  their  efforts  to  plant  the  cross  among  the  sav- 
age tribes  on  the  western  lake  country,  and  "  during  the 
following  years,"  writes  the  historian,  "  these  missionaries 
were  employed  in  strengthening  the  power  of  France  over 
the  possessions  which  she  claimed  from  Green  Bay  to  the 
head  of  Lake  Superior,  and  in  collecting  information  respect- 
ing the  region  extending  towards  the  Mississippi."*  De- 
troit was  founded  in  1791,  during  the  reign  of  Louis  XIV. 
After  the  great  battle  of  Quebec  in  1759,  it  fell,  with  the 
whole  country,  into  the  hands  of  the  British  ;  though  not 
without  the  most  bloody  opposition  on  the  part  of  the  Indian 
allies  of  the  French,  when  Pontiac.  a  name  which  fills  a 

*  Lanman.  chap.  2. 


380  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

fearful  page  in  the  history  of  Michigan,  achieved  wonders 
of  skill  and  daring.  In  the  revolutionary  struggle,  Michi- 
gan passed  over  to  the  republicans*,  and  was  recovered  back 
by  the  British  during  the  war  of  1814.  Perry's  victories  on 
the  lake,  however,  put  General  Harrison  and  himself  in 
possession  of  the  peninsula,  since  which  time  it  has  been 
rapidly  rising  to  its  present  prosperous  condition.  Its  his- 
tory in  every  stage,  is,  perhaps,  more  full  of  striking  inci- 
dent than  that  of  any  other  state  in  the  Union. 

In  our  journey  to  Jackson,  we  stopped  several  hours  at 
Ann  Arbour,  and  slept  one  night  at  Lyma.  The  first  is  a 
charming  town  with  well  built  streets,  the  State  University, 
a  handsome  church,  and  several  meeting  houses.  The 
Rev.  Francis  Cuming,  whom  I  afterwards  met  on  more 
than  one  occasion,  was  at  this  time  rector  of  the  parish  ;  he 
has  since  removed  to  Grand  Rapids  in  the  west  of  the  state. 
He  is  (next  to  his  diocesan)  the  most  active  and  energetic 
clergyman  in  this  diocess. 

The  first  view  of  Jackson  from  its  eastern  approach,  is 
one  of  the  most  picturesque  I  have  ever  gazed  upon.  Lying 
in  a  valley  marked  by  the  swellings  and  inequalities  of  this 
part  of  the  country,  crowned  with  verdure,  with  the  silvery 
current  of  the  Grand  River  pursuing  its  serpentine  course 
in  full  view  for  several  miles,  there  was  something  in  the 
general  aspect  of  the  scene,  as  I  several  times  viewed  it 
from  the  same  eminence,  which  always  impressed  me  in  a 
peculiar  degree.  It  is  unquestionably  one  of  the  best 
situated  towns  in  the  state  ;  and  being  intended  to  take 
the  place  of  Detroit  as  the  future  seat  of  the  local  govern- 
ment, is  rapidly  increasing  in  population  and  wealth.  The 
state  prison  is  already  erected  and  a  site  chosen  for  the 
Capitol. 

During  our  stay  here  we  frequently  met  the  principal 
town's-people,  who  afford  a  more  favourable  specimen  of 


THE    INDIANS.  381 

western  society  than  I  was  prepared  to  expect ;  indeed,  I 
have  never  received  more  agreeable  impressions  than  I 
carried  away  with  me  from  this  pleasant  circle.  Mr. 
Dwight,  an  early  settler  in  Michigan,  and  his  excellent  lady, 
pressed  the  warmest  hospitalities  upon  us,  and  made  us 
acquainted  with  many  other  families  in  the  neighbourhood. 
This  gentleman  entertained  us  with  numerous  anecdotes 
in  his  own  experience,  illustrative  of  the  Indian  character. 
The  last  tribe  had  been  bought  out,  and  sent  across  Lake 
Michigan  about  three  years  previous,  and  the  place  that 
then  knew  them,  knows  them  no  more. 

"Ye  say  they  all  have  passed  away, 

That  noble  race  and  brave ; 
Their  light  canoes  have  vanished 

From  off  the  crested  wave. 
That,  mid  the  forests  where  they  roamed, 

There  rings  no  hunter's  shot ; 
But  their  name  is  on  your  waters 

Ye  may  not  wash  it  out. 

Yes,  where  Ontario's  billow, 

Like  ocean's  surge  is  curl'd, 
Where  strong  Niagara's  thunders  wake 

The  wonder  of  the  world  ; 
Where  red  Missouri  bringeth 

Rich  tribute  from  the  west ; 
And  Rappahannock  sweetly  sleeps 

On  green  Virginia's  breast. 

Ye  say  their  cone-like  cabins, 

That  clustered  round  the  vale, 
Have  disappeared  like  wither'd  leaves, 

Before  the  autumn  gale ; 
But  their  memory  liveth  on  your  hills, 

Their  name  is  on  your  shore  ; 
Your  everlasting  rivers  speak 

Their  dialect  of  yore." 


382  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

By  a  tabular  statement  of  General  Cross,  made  to  the 
United  States  War  Department  several  years  ago,  it  appears 
that  the 

Number  of  Indians  now  east  of  the  Missis- 
sippi is        -  -  -  -  -       49,365 
Number  of  Indians  who  have  emigrated  from 

the  east  to  the  west  side,  -  -        51,327 

Number  of  indigenous  tribes,  -  -      231,806 


Aggregate,  332,498 

It  is  estimated  by  Mr.  Harris,  the  "Indian  Commissioner," 
that  these  Indians  can  bring  into  the  field  upwards  of  sixty- 
six  thousand  warriors :  that  is,  when  emigration  is  com- 
pleted, and  they  choose  to  coalesce.  To  resist  such  a  coali- 
tion, General  Cross  thinks  a  force  of  7000  men  would  be 
necessary  on  the  western  frontier,  distributed  thus  : — 


Fort  Snelling,       - 

300i 

nen 

Fort  Crawford,            ... 

300 

u 

Upper  Forks  of  the  Des  Moines, 

400 

a 

Fort  Leavenworth, 

1200 

a 

Fort  Gibson,                ... 

1500 

a 

Fort  Towson,       ... 

800 

a 

The  8  posts  of  refuge  proposed, 

800 

ti 

The  protection  of  4  depots, 

200 

u 

Jefferson  barracks,  as  a  corps  of  reserve, 

1500 

u 

Total,  7000  men 

Larger  than  the  whole  standing  army  of  the  United 
States,  rank  and  file  ! 

"  So  that  it  remains  a  question,"  writes  a  Philadelphia  pam- 
phleteer, "  for  the  able  financier,  as  well  as  for  the  able  philan- 
thropist, what  is  to  be  done  with  these  332,498  Indians  who 
yet  live  to  claim  a  place  upon  earth  ?  Is  a  standing  army 
of  7000  men  the  cheapest  as  well  as  the  most  honourable 


THE    INDIANS.  383 

way  of  getting  rid  of  these  red  men,  who  pretend  to  rights, 
and  have  had  a  faith  in  treaties  1  From  New-York,  Ohio, 
Georgia,  arc  all  to  he  driven  to  coalesce  in  the  western 
wilderness?  and  are  we  so  bound  that  we  dare  not  raise  a 
voice  for  a  remnant  of  the  mighty  fallen  ?  In  these  three 
states,  as  in  others,  a  few  have  lifted  their  heads,  and  have 
adopted  the  customs  and  manners  of  their  civilized  neigh- 
bours ;  many  have  good  houses,  barns,  cattle,  fenced  fields, 
yet  a  drunken  chief  may  sign,  to  a  no  less  unworthy 
receiver,  all  another's  earthly  treasures,  save  the  lives,  for 
whom  these  alone  were  valued.  And  is  there  no  restitu- 
tion ?  Are  the  Senecas,  the  Onandaguas,  the  Creeks,  with 
others,  to  be  driven  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet  into  the 
western  wilderness,  to  coalesce  there  ?  and  be  driven  from 
thence  by  a  standing  army  of  7000  well  equipped  fighting 
men  ?  And  for  this  is  it  that  every  male  Indian  over  eigh- 
teen years  of  age  is  to  be  furnished  with  a  blanket  and  a 
gun  ?  Forbid  it  heaven  !  Let  not  the  escutcheon  of  our 
nation  be  defaced  by  so  foul  a  blot !  Let  the  people  learn 
that  righteousness,  or  as  our  forefathers  wrote  it,  '  right- 
wiseness  exalteth  a  nation,  but  sin  is  a  reproach  to  any 
people.' " 

I  greatly  enjoyed  a  ride,  while  in  Jackson,  with  a  gentle- 
man named  De  Mill,  through  a  portion  of  the  south  of  the 
state,  which  took  us  by  a  number  of  those  beautiful  features 
in  nature,  the  lakes.  On  the  banks  of  one  of  these,  in 
Lenawee  county,  my  companion  (whose  acquaintance  ex- 
tends to  every  clergyman  and  every  parish  in  Michigan)  intro- 
duced me  to  the  residence  of  a  missionary  priest,  employed 
by  the  American  Church  Missionary  Society,  under  the 
Bishop  of  Michigan's  direction,  to  exercise  his  office  amongst 
the  scattered  members  of  the  Church  in  the  counties  of 
Lenawee,  Hillsdale,  and  Southern  Washtenaw ;  besides 
officiating  alternately  at  three  churches,  many  miles  dis- 


* 


384  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

tant  from  each  other.  Here  was  a  man  of  education  and 
birth,  tiie  nephew  of  an  Irish  prelate,  devoting  his  whole 
energies  to  the  cause  of  the  Church— travelling,  frequently 
in  all  weathers,  from  one  post  of  labour  to  another,  himself 
the  occupant  of  a  log  cabin,  ministering  to  the  spiritual 
wants  of  single  families  in  the  depths  of  the  forest,  and  on 
the  solitary  prairie.  Wherever  the  sons  and  daughters  of 
the  Church  were  to  be  found  within  his  wide  district  was  our 
missionary  periodically  present,  to  minister  to  their  spiritual 
need,  to  feed  them  with  the  body  of  their  God,  and  admit 
their  offspring  to  the  fold  of  Christ ;  and  all  this  was  under- 
taken, and  has  been  for  many  years  prosecuted  for  love  of 
the  work  alone,  as  the  missionary  salary  is  small,  and  the 
missionary  has  sacrificed,  together  with  the  comforts  and 
luxuries  of  his  British  home,  no  inconsiderable  amount  of 
money. 

And  his  labours  are  shared,  and  his  hands  and  spirit  aie 
strengthened,  and  his  duties  are  lightened  by  that  graceful 
and  accomplished  female  who  receives  us,  and  is  spreading 
with  her  own  hands  (for  she  has  no  domestic)  a  snow-white 
table-cloth,  on  which  is  soon  placed  a  simple,  yet  excellent 
meal.  How  sweet  is  this  bread,  and  how  light  and  whole- 
some these  cakes,  how  well-preserved  these  fruits,  and  how 
delicious  are  these  fresh  fish,  drawn  from  the  lake  whose 
waters  ripple  against  the  very  foot  of  the  well-cultivated 
garden — cultivated  by  the  missionary's  own  hands.  When 
did  beauty  and  grace,  set  off  by  enlightened  piety,  appear 
less  beautiful  or  less  graceful  in  a  checked  apron  ?  Such  a 
garment  our  hostess  wears ;  and  she  but  lately  adorned  and 
shone  amidst  a  circle  of  the  highest  and  most  distinguished 
in  her  own  country. 

And  there  are  more  missionaries  like  L r  in  Michi- 
gan ;  and  a  number  such  throughout  other  neighbouring 
states.     What  marvel  that  catholicity  should  so  increase  in 


A    MISSIONARY    PRIEST.  385 

the  West,  when  its  settlers  see  before  them  such  examples 
of  self-denying  zeal,  and  quenchless  love  for  their  best 
interests  ? 

Let  the  faithful  pioneers  of  the  cross,  spending  their  lives 
in  Western  America,  but  persevere  in  the  course  which 
experience  has  proved  to  be  the  only  successful  one — of 
preaching  the  Gospel  in  the  Church  ;  carrying  out  all  the 
principles  of  the  Church  as  she  is,  without  diminution  or 
addition,  and  it  is  as  morally  certain  that  catholicity  will 
cover  the  continent  of  North  America,  and  the  American 
Church  episcopal  become  the  greatest  light  of  Christendom 
within  a  few  years,  as  that  the  foundation  of  God  standeth 
sure  !  Happy  day  for  America,  when,  from  Maine  to  Texas 
— from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific — from  every  city  fane, 
from  every  rural  village  and  solitary  hamlet — one  altar  will 
be  raised — one  Sacrifice  offered  thereon  ;  when  one  voice  of 
praise,  the  united  voice  of  a  united  Church,  will  ascend 
(meet  offering)  in  the  language  of  one  ritual ;  when  the 
Apostles'  creed  will  be  the  creed  of  the  nation,  and  the 
prayers  of  the  Apostles  and  their  immediate  successors,  the 
venerable  liturgy  of  the  ages,  will  be  the  medium  of  all 
America's  supplications.  That  day  shall  come  if  the  Church 
is  true  to  her  principles. 

25 


CHAPTER  LVI. 


"NEW    SCHOOL       PRESBYTERIANISM. RETURN  TO    PHIL- 
ADELPHIA.— BELLEVILLE    REVISITED. PATERSON. 

I  left  Michigan,  after  a  most  agreeable  sojourn,  sooner 
than  I  expected,  being  hurried  back  by  family  matters.  I 
heard  the  bishop  preach  several  times,  both  in  his  own 
church  and  during  a  visitation  of  the  diocess,  and  every 
occasion  enhanced  my  admiration  of  him.  When  I  left  the 
state  he  was  in  the  midst  of  a  controversy  with  a  presbyte- 
rian  opponent,  who  had  been  pleased  to  take  exceptions  at. 
some  passages  in  a  sermon  preached  by  the  bishop  at  an 
ordination  held  in  Detroit,  published,  at  the  request  of  the 
clergy  and  many  of  the  laity  present.  Why  a  sermon 
preached  in  the  bishop's  own  cathedral,  and  stating  most 
properly  the  views  of  the  Catholic  Church  and  the  Prayer 
Book  in  reference  to  the  solemn  act  then  transacted,  should 
give  offence  to  those  holding  different  views,  so  as  to  draw 
down  on  its  author  the  attacks  which  this  printed  sermon 
provoked,  it  is  difficult  to  conceive — except  on  the  presump- 
tion that  the  "reverend"  fulminator  of  the  most  malicious 
of  those  attacks  supposed  himself  to  be  invested  with  the 
power  and  prerogatives  of  an  inquisitor  general,  whose  pecu- 
liar office  it  is  to  exercise  a  censorship  on  the  religious  press, 
and  to  suppress,  as  far  as  the  laws  of  the  United  States 
permit,  the  free  exercise,  and  quiet  enjoyment  of  private 
judgment. 

The  spite  and  vexation  manifested  by  the  American  pres- 


"new  school"  presbyterianism.  387 

byterians  at  the  rapid  growth  of  the  Church,  exceeds  that 
of  any  other  sect.  The  weakness  which  their  own  recent 
divisions  into  "old"  and  "new  school,"— the  latter  embrac- 
ing several  shades  of  opinion  on  some  of  the  most  vital  points 
of  doctrine— while  it  has  led  several  of  the  ministers  of  that 
denomination,  and  a  large  number  of  laymen  to  attach 
themselves  to  the  ranks  of  episcopacy,  seems,  at  the  same 
time,  to  increase  the  rancour  of  those  who  remain  against 
the  rival  communion.  Two  specimens,  out  of  a  mul- 
titude such,  will  suffice  to  exhibit  the  extent  of  this  feeling 
of  opposition.  The  first  is  an  extract  from  a  letter  issued 
by  the  synod  of  the  "New  School  Presbyterian  Church,"  in 
Michigan : — ■ 

"  We  want  you,  beloved  brethren,  to  beware  of  Satan's 
devices.     Never  be  satisfied  with  the  mere  form  of  godli- 
ness.    Beware  we  beseech  you,  of  that  spirit  of  Antichrist 
which  has  grown  up  within  these  few  years  to  such  giant 
strength  in  a  denomination  of  religious  people,  which  we 
have   been  accustomed  to  consider  evangelical,  but  which 
we  fear  must,  hereafter,  be  treated  as  fundamentally  erro- 
neous.    We  now  refer  you  in  plain  English,  to  the  episco- 
pal denomination.     We  likewise  exhort  you  not  to  be  de- 
ceived with  regard   to   the   fatal  tendency  of  those  most 
palpable  errors  which   have  taken   possession  of  what  is 
termed  the  « low  church"  portion  of  that  mischievous  estab- 
lishment.     Even  that  portion,   in  our  estimation,   has  in 
connection  with  it,  no  little  false  theology  and  exclusive 
sectarianism  [! !  !]  and  Jesuitical  proselytism  ;  together  with 
opposition  to  temperance,  and   revivals  of   religion,  inter- 
mingled with  a  dependence  on  forms  and  successions ;  all 
of  which  we  consider  highly  injurious  to  the  cause  of' hu- 
man salvation." 

The  other  is  from  the  New  York  "Evangelist,"  an  organ 
of  the  "  New  School  presbyterian  Church."     The  absolute 


388  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

falsehood  which  marks  every  statement,  and  the  tolerant 
Christian  spirit  which  characterises  the  whole  extract,  are 
too  prominent  to  require  any  exposure  beyond  that  which 
it  bears  on  its  face.  Its  evident  design  is  to  entrap  a  class 
of  readers  as  ignorant  of  history  as  they  must  be  of  ecclesias- 
tical and  civil  polity.  Out  of  such  material,  we  opine,  is 
the  "  new  school"  sect  mainly  formed. 

"  The  Episcopal  Church,  Anglican  and  Anglo-American, 
is  in  many  respects  very  questionably  protestant  at  all. 
Among  the  Reformed  Churches  she  was  late  in  the  day,  in 
her  awkward  and  ambiguous  affiliation  ;  she  never  protested 
originally  at  all  herself,  but  was  whirled  about  by  the  im- 
perious caprice  of  her  corrupt  and  tyrannical  monarch  ;  and 
so  prudent  in  acquiescing,  if  not  in  taking  originally  or  at 
all  her  own  position,  she  remained  less  acting  than  acted 
upon,  and  surrendered  all  her  prerogatives,  as  a  Church  of 
Christ,  to  the  usurping  and  monstrous  headship  of  one  of 
the  vilest  beasts  of  a  king,  the  second  Tudor  and  the  eighth 
Henry,  who  subdued  her  as  a  minister  of  his  will  and  the 
panderer  to  his  lawless  gratifications — against  the  honours 
of  his  proper  wife,  and  more  against  the  prerogatives  of  her 
lawful  head,  the  Lord  Christ,  the  only  legitimate  King  of 
his  own  Church.  In  her  protestant  relations  she  was 
mainly  the  passive  creature  of  her  wicked  and  hateful  king ; 
she  came  late,  and  very  gradually,  and  as  we  have  said, 
very  awkwardly,  into  the  conformity  and  the  confederacy 
of  protestant  churches.  There  are  several  peculiarities  to 
be  noted,  in  her  original  not-half  reformed  adhesion  to  the 
protestant  cause ;  peculiarities  in  which  she  was  solitary 
and  peerless,  as  well  as  inconsistent,  raw,  and  ridiculous, 
among  the  sisters  of  the  protestant  world  ;  peculiarities,  like 
those  of  a  felon  in  the  striped  uniform  of  the  state  prison, 
worn  on  the  Erastian  principle  of  conformity  to  the  will  of 


'•'new  school"  presbyterianism.  389 

Caesar,  that  is,  of  King  Henry,  the  Blue  Beard  monster,  and 
master,  and  dictator  of  her  changes. 

"  So  true  is  it  that  the  hierarchy  of  England  is  old  popish  ; 
that  it  was  never  reformed  :  that  all  other  changes  left  its 
popish,  clerical  compagination  unchanged,  in  every  impor- 
tant or  characteristic  particular ;  and  that  the  dark  ages,  by 
dark  and  gradual  accretions,  and  by  Romish  prescriptions 
and  conformities,  made  it  what  it  is,  stamped  with  the  image 
of  the  beast,  and  then  left  it  unreformed  among  the  glories 
of  the  glorious  Reformation.  It  is  also  a  known  fact  that 
many  of  the  clergy  conformed  at  the  time,  who  were  avowed 
papists ;  and  of  all  orders,  from  the  lofty  and  the  lordly,  to 
the  starveling  curates  and  pensioners  of  pampered  prelacy. 
They  conformed  on  the  Erastian  principle  ;  false,  con- 
temptible, and  unchristian  as  it  is !  They  prudently  acqui- 
esced— and  saved  their  places  and  their  purses ;  in  a  way 
of  which  we  shall  speak  more  hereafter. 

"  Now,  it  is  another  fact  that  of  all  the  nominal  churches 
of  the  protestant  world,  England  alone  retained  her  misera- 
ble popish  hierarchy.  All  the  other  churches,  insular  or  con- 
tinental, revolutionized  and  reformed  their  order  as  well  as 
their  doctrine  in  a  more  Christian  style.  Whether  Lutheran 
or  Reformed,  all  the  protestants  were  anti-prelatists  [!  !] 
They  never  thought  of  reforming  away  the  popish  doctrine 
and  retaining  the  popish  hierarchy.  They  made  a  thorough 
purgation.  *  *  *  As  for  bishops  of  the  diocesan  mould 
attempting  or  originating  a  reform,  and  consummating  it, 
the  idea  is  Utopian  !  What  history  records  any  such  thing  1 
It  never  happened.  Their  collective  history  is  the  other 
way.  They  have  always  been  badly  conservative  in  respect 
to  reforms.  They  always  hang  on  the  traces  of  the  age, 
oppose  all  reforms  in  the  main,  and  magnify  antiquity  and 
the  wisdom  of  the  ancients.  They  are  always,  like  Bishop 
Bonner,  for  '  what  the  Church  believes.'     They  teach  us  to 


390        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

worship  the  authority  of  the  fathers,  and  infallibility  of  their 
oracles  of  tradition,  and  their  own  divine  right  to  do  what 
they  please — to  govern,  dictate,  and  dogmatize  to  the  world. 
*  *  *  They  and  theirs  were  all  tories  in  our  Revolu- 
tionary war — with  few  exceptions.  They  retarded  it,  prayed 
against  it,  denounced  it,  and  now  acquiesce  in  it — on  the 
Erastian  principle  probably,  or  from  some  policy  even  more 
selfish.  Their  whole  history  shows  them  anti-reformers, 
anti-Americans,  anti-protestants.  It  is  the  genius  and  spirit 
of  their  order,  to  oppose  all  reforms  in  Church,  and  in  state ; 
as  if  innovation  were  always  a  crime,  and  never  can  be  an 
improvement  and  a  virtue !  and  as  if  old  error  was  better 
than  eternally  older  truth  ! 

"  Let  the  American  people  open  their  eyes  to  its  true  char- 
acter. This  same  prelacy  is  the  foe  of  man  and  of  God.  It 
is  essentially  un-protestant,  and  hostile  to  the  simple  ration- 
ality and  righteousness  of  our  republican  institutions.  It  is 
analogous  to  the  assumed  divine  right  of  kings,  and  other 
arrogant  and  wicked  assumptions  of  the  feudal  system.  It 
is  a  shoot  from  the  trunk  of  the  pagan  Caesar,  not  from 
Jesus  Christ.'' 

Attacks  in  a  precisely  similar  strain*  are  weekly  made  in 

*  The  hostility  of  this  miserable  sect  against  a  liturgy  so  purely  evangelical  as 
that  of  the  Anglo  and  Anglo-American  Churches  is  easily  accounted  for  in  the 
peculiar  views  which  they  entertain  touching  the  sublime  mystery  of  the  atone- 
ment, reaching  even  to  the  moral  greatness  of  our  Saviour's  character.  The 
following  genuine  paragraph  from  the  same  print  will  sufficiently  indicate  how 
"  New  School  Presbyterianism"  is  getting  on.  Irving's  notion  relative  to  the 
peccability  of  Christ,  is  not  a  touch  to  it !  Yet  the  sentiments  it  contains  are,  I 
can  assure  the  English  reader,  growing  much  in  vogue  in  the  "  protestant" 
ranks  in  America.  Very  similar  opinions,  variously  expressed,  have  been  at 
different  times  put  forth  by  other  heresiarchs. 

"  What  is  the  example  which  the  sufferings  and  death  of  Christ  afford  7 — an 
example,  if  unexplained  by  any  other  circumstance,  the  most  frightful  and  dis- 
gusting the  world  ever  saw.  If  this  were  Christ's  object,  he  has  most  miserably 
failed.  *  *  *  He  never  manifested  any  extraordinary  exemplary  de- 


"new  school"  presbyterianism.  391 

this  sagacious  organ  upon  the  order,  the  liturgy,  and  the 
other  features  of  the  Church,  nor  are  the  other  sects  back- 
ward in  taking  up  and  repeating  the  oft-refuted  charges ; 
justifying  the  complaint  of  Dr.  Jarvis,  which  to  English 
readers  may  otherwise  appear  an  exaggerated  representa- 
tion :  "  The  present  is  a  period  of  rebuke  and  blasphemy. 
We  are  assailed  on  the  one  hand  by  the  prelates  of  the 
Roman  communion,  on  the  other,  by  countless  numbers 
among  the  protestant  sects.  All  unite  in  nothing  but  in 
animosity  towards  us  ;  and  that,  too,  in  a  country  which 
professes  to  tolerate  every  shade  of  religious  faith  and  opinion. 
The  protestant  sects  raise  the  alarm  cry  that  we  are  papists, 
either  openly  or  in  disguise ;  the  prelates  of  the  Roman  com- 
munion help  on  the  clamour  in  hopes  of  profiting  by  our  dis- 
cord, and  repelling  the  more  easily  our  claims  as  the  reformed 
branch  of  the  One  Holy,  Catholic  and  Apostolic  Church." 

I  saw  more  of  Cleveland  on  our  return  eastward,  as  the 
boat  stopped  there  for  half  a  day  to  receive  the  Columbus 
mail.  It  promises  to  be  the  most  important  port  on  the 
south  shore  of  Lake  Erie,  and  unlike  most  sea  [lake]  ports, 
its  high  state  of  morals  keeps  pace  with  its  commercial  pros- 
perity.    One  proof  of  this  was  afforded  to  our  view  in  the 

portment,  *  *  *  his  anguish  and  cries,  his  bloody  sweat  in  the  garden,  and 
his  pitiful  cry  on  the  cross,  seem  to  be  entirely  unmanly.  The  desertion  of  his 
friends,  and  the  cruelty  of  his  enemies,  he  might  have  borne  with  far  greater 
composure.  Many  of  his  followers,  in  all  ages,  have  endured  much  sorer  evil 
than  he  experienced,  with  far  more  apparent  magnanimity  and  self-possession. 
So  far  from  setting  an  example  of  patience  and  self-possession  in  the  hour  of 
suffering  and  trial,  he  might  be  commended  to  the  example  of  some  of  his  own 
followers." 

"Can  anything"  truly  remarked  a  Church  journal,  commenting  on  the  article 
whence  this  is  extracted,  "be  conceived  more  atrocious  than  such  language? 
We  venture  to  say  that  the  apostate  Julian  never  expressed  himself  in  more  ir- 
reverent terms  of  the  adorable  Saviour  of  the  world,  nor  was  even  Voltaire  in 
his  infidel  ravings,  guilty  of  worse  profanation  than  this." 


T 


392  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

well-ordered  and  cleanly  appearance  of  the  streets  adjoining 
the  quays,  which  are  wholly  free  of  dram-shops. 

While  sitting  with  a  group  of  passengers  on  the  boat's 
deck,  as  she  left  Cleveland  behind  her,  and  the  proud  Erie 
with  its  numerous  sails  opened  to  our  view,  its  south  shore, 
as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  disclosing  the  cultivated  fur- 
rows and  broad  pastures  of  a  civilized  and  well-peopled 
region,  one  of*  our  party  repeated  the  lines  of  an  English 
poet,*  whose  eye  never  witnessed  what  (in  the  licensed 
hyperbole  of  poetic  language)  he  so  beautifully  prefigured ; 

On  Erie's  banks,  where  tigers  t  steal  along, 
And  the  dread  Indian  chants  a  dismal  song — 
Where  human  fiends  on  midnight  errands  walk, 
And  bathe  in  brains  the  murd'rous  tomakawk  ; 
There  shall  the  flocks  on  thymy  pastures  stray, 
And  shepherds  dance  at  Summer's  closing  day. 
Each  wandering  genius  of  the  lowly  glen 
Shall  start  to  view  the  glittering  haunts  of  men ; 
And  silent  watch  on  woodland  heights  around, 
The  village  curfew  as  it  tolls  profound. 

In  a  few  more  short  years,  Lake  Superior  will  cease  to 
be  navigated  by  the  Indian  canoe,  and  its  banks  will  swarm 
like  these  with  the  busy  crowds  of  civilized  habitants. 

I  made  another  visit  to  "  the  great  Falls,"  on  our  journey 
homeward,  and  varied  our  course  by  taking  the  stage  to 
Rochester,  (where  we  remained  ten  days,)  and  the  canal 
thence  to  Schenectady,  near  Albany ;  so  that  I  have  fol- 
lowed the  entire  course  of  that  celebrated  work  of  art. 

Before  reaching  our  Philadelphia  friends,  we  made  a 
fortnight's  visit  in  New  Jersey ;  where  I  witnessed  the  con- 
secration of  the  church  at  Belleville,  which  had  been  com- 
pleted  chiefly,   through   the  liberality  of  Mr.  Stuyvesant, 

*  Campbell. 

t  The  tiger  is  not  a  native  of  North  America,  though  the  wild  cat  belongs 
to  the  same  genus,  and  possesses  equal  ferocity. 


PATTERSON.  393 

who,  as  is  his  wont,  afterwards  entertained  the  attending 
clergy,  numbering  on  this  occasion  sixteen  or  eighteen,  at 
his  house.  Among  the  company  were  Drs.  Eastburn, 
Wainwright,  Milnor,  and  Anthon,  of  New  York.  The 
latter  is  the  Greek  professor  at  Columbia  College,  and  au- 
thor or  editor  of  nearly  all  the  grammars,  lexicons,  and 
classical  school  books  used  in  the  United  States.  His  man- 
ners and  conversation  are  quiet  and  prepossessing 

I  also  took  a  day  to  visit  Patterson,  the  seat  of  some 
considerable  manufactories,  and  the  beautiful  Falls  of  the 
Passaic.  Here  I  met  with  a  friend  of  former  years  in  the 
person  of  the  Rev.  Alfred  Loutrel,  the  son  of  Mr.  Loutrel 
before-mentioned,  who  was  supplying  the  parish  of  St. 
Paul,  of  which  he  has  since  been  instituted  rector.  The 
congregation  of  this  church  is  large   and   public -spirited. 

Mr.  W e,  a  vestryman,  at  whose  house  I  stayed,  is  a 

strong  advocate  of  the  free-sitting  system,  which  it  is  my 
fervent  prayer  his  influence  may  prove  effectual  in  intro- 
ducing in  the  parish  church.—"  We  should  then,"  said  Mr. 
W.  "have  to  erect  another  place  pretty  soon,  as  there 
would  not  be  church  room  for  the  influx  which  the  primi- 
tive mode  would  create." 

"  But  where  would  the  money  come  from  for  that  pur- 
pose ?" 

"The  money,"  replied  my  host,  the  colour  mounting  to 
his  cheek — "  It  is  this  selfish  pew-system  which  closes  up 
the  hearts,  and  tightens  the  purse-strings  of  churchmen. 
Our  laity  are  rich  enough  to  give  church-room  to  every 
episcopal  family  in  the  United  States,  and  a  good  support  to 
every  minister,  without  feeling  it.  But  they  never  will,  under 
the  present  system.  There  is  money  enough  in  the  church, 
and  it  will  flow  into  its  proper  channel  if  we  only  come 
back  to  Christian  principles." 


394  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

I  was  reminded  of  the  late  Earl  of  Aylesford's  remark 
"  that,  as  we  cannot  fix  our  places  in  the  next  world,  we 
ought  not  to  attempt  to  fix  them  in  our  churches  in  this 
world,  and  that  if  the  poorest  man  in  the  village  sat  side 
by  side  with  him,  he  would  be  satisfied." 

Patterson  has,  at  least,  one  Earl  of  Aylesford. 


CHAPTER  LVII. 

PHILADELPHIAN    SUBURBS. 

"  Laudabunt  alii  claram  Rhodon  aut  Mitylenen, 

Aut  Ephesum,  bimarisve  Corinthi 
Mania,  vel  Baccho  Thebas,  vel  Apolline,  Delphos 

Insignes,  aut  Thessala  Tempe. 
*  *  *  * 

Me  nee  tarn  patiens  Lacedaemon, 

Nee  tarn  Larissas  percussit  campus  opimae, 
Quam  domus  Albuneae  resonantis, 

Et  praeceps  Anio,  et  Tiburni  lucus ;  et  uda 
Mobilibus  pomaria  rivis. — Hor.  Carmen,  VII. 

Having  several  times  repealed  my  visit  to  the  rector  of 
St,  David's,  Manayunk,  and  rambled  with  him  among  the 
scenes  of  beauty,  for  which  the  banks  of  the  Schuylkill  are 
celebrated,  I  resolved  in  the  summer  of  1842,  to  select  a 
place  of  residence  in  that  neighbourhood.  The  Schuylkill 
had  always  been  a  favourite  river  with  me  ;  it  is  indeed  a 
lovely  stream,  flowing  in  its  whole  course  from  the  moun- 
tains of  Carbon  to  the  Delaware  through  scenes  of  sur- 
passing beauty.  The  invitations  of  my  friend  were  added 
to  the  promptings  of  my  own  inclination  to  reside  in  his 
parish. 

On  the  first  of  July,  therefore,  I  took  possession  of  a 
house  which  chanced  to  be  vacant,  within  a  few  minutes 
walk  of  both  church  and  parsonage ;  and  for  the  two 
ensuing  years  divided  my  time  between  the  pleasing  office 

of  assisting  J n  in  the  duties,  public  and  private,  of  a 

large  and  populous  parish,   and  the  quiet  enjoyments  of 
home,  while  regular  arrivals  of  English  papers  gave  us  an 


396  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

opportunity  of  keeping  pace  with  every  event  transpiring 
in  the  old  world,  as  fast  as  her  majesty's  semi-monthly 
mail  reached  the  ports  of  New  York  and  Boston.  "  The 
two  countries  now,"  remarked  Daniel  Webster,  in  one  of 
his  speeches,  "  lie  side  by  side." 

One  of  the  most  attractive  places  where  I  occasionally 
did  duty,  when  not  officiating  in  Manayunk,  was  Phoenixs- 
ville,  situated  like  our  own  town,  on  the  banks  of  the  silver 
Schuylkill,  twenty  miles  distant,  and  sustained  also  by 
manufactures ;  though  having  as  few  of  the  disagreeable 
adjuncts  of  a  manufacturing  village  as  I  ever  saw.  The 
houses  occupied  by  the  operatives  form  several  neat  and 
comfortable  rows  on  the  main  street,  and  evidence  in  their 
general  appearance,  and  the  cheerful,  healthful  looks  of  the 
inmates,  the  care  and  consideration  of  the  mill  owners. 
One  of  them,  Mr.  Mason,  has  extensive  rolling  mills,  which, 
in  their  admirable  construction,  and  the  beauty  of  the 
machinery,  are  not  surpassed  by  any  English  establishment 
of  the  same  kind.  About  a  mile  from  the  village  is  one  of 
the  most  English-looking  and  English-kept  residences  I 
have  met  with  in  the  United  States,  standing  in  the  midst 
of  a  fine  estate,  and  commanding  an  extensive  south  view. 
It  is  the  property  of  a  Mr.  Morris,  the  senior  churchwarden 
of  the  parish.  Here  I  was  each  time  entertained,  and 
found  in  the  owner  of  the  mansion — a  true  son  of  the 
Church  of  the  genuine  Sir  Robert  Inglis  stamp — every 
attraction,  intellectual  and  literary,  that  could  make  a  visit 
agreeable. 

At  Emanuel  church,  Kensington,  in  which  I  had 
preached  about  two  years  previously  to  a  select  few,  col- 
lected under  the  old  (i.  e.  the  exclusive  or  pew)  system,  I 
was  gratified  to  find  a  change  made  in  accordance  with  the 
"Resolution"  of  the  General  Convention.  By  a  vote  of  the 
vestry,  the  doors  were  taken  from  the  pews,  and  finials 


THE    APOSTOLIC    SYSTEM.  397 

placed  at  the  seat-ends;  the  church  doors  were  thrown 
open  (not  in  mockery)  to  the  people,  without  any  other  tax 
than  their  voluntary  offerings  on  each  Lord's  Day.* — In 
other  words,  the  drawing-room  for  the  use  of  a  select  circle 
of  genteel  "  episcopalians"  was  converted  into  a  parish 
church.  What  was  the  immediate  result? — A  larger  con- 
gregation, rilling  closely  every  part  of  the  building,  as  well 
dressed,  and  more  devotional  than  before.  What  further 
result '} — 

A  larger  treasury  ! 

Such  has  been  the  effect  in  America,  wherever  the  apos- 
tolic system  has  been  tried.  One  after  another  of  the 
Romanist  churches  has  adopted  it,  invariably  with  the  best 
results  to  the  success  of  that  sect.  By  it  the  methodists 
gather  multitudes  into  their  communion,  many  of  whom 
would,— if  not  repelled  from  our  fold— greatly  prefer  its 
worship  and  ministry.  Let  but  the  different  rectors  and 
vestries  of  newly  organized  parishes  give  sanction  to  the 
practice,  and  it  would  soon  become  universal;  and  the 
American  Church  would  then  have,  in  her  possession  of  an 
Offertory,  a  mode  of  sustaining  the  clergy,  assisting  the  ob- 
jects of  parochial  education,  and  parochial  charity,  as  well 
as  of  swelling  the  missionary  exchequer,  which  none  of  the 
sects  possess.  One  that  will  at  least  guard  against  the 
fluctuations  and  precariousness  of  the  present  supplies  to 
these  objects ;  though  it  may  fail  of  achieving  the  larger 
schemes  of  benevolence  which  a  national  endowment  en- 
ables its  trustees,  the  clergy,  to  accomplish. 

My  clerical  engagements  also  took  me  several  times  up 
the  Delaware.  One  of  these  excursions,  which  lives  in  my 
memory  as  the  most  interesting  in  the  incidents  which 
marked  it,  was  to  Burlington,  the  residence  of  the  Bishop 
of  New  Jersey.  I  had  promised  an  English  friend  who, 
*  l  Cor.  xvi.  2. 


398  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

at  the  joint  instigation  of  D s  and  myself,  had  made 

choice  of  the  Church  as  his  profession,  to  be  present  at  the 
ceremony  of  his  admission  to  deacon's  orders.  His  term  of 
candidateship,  which  was  made  in  New  Jersey,  expired  in 
the  summer  of  1843,  and  on  Trinity  Sunday  the  bishop, 
whose  canonical  practice  in  this  respect  is  (almost  necessa- 
rily) single,  held  an  ordination  in  St.  Mary's. 

It  was  a  bright  sunny  day,  and  the  ample  doors  of  River- 
side were  thrown  open,  discovering  the  bishop's  family  at 
breakfast,  while  enjoying  the  prospect  spread  out  by  nature's 
most  lavish  hand  before  the  house.  The  sober  quiet  refine- 
ment, and  social  comfort,  presented  by  the  family  group, 
and  the  unambitious  elegance  of  the  mansion,  imparted  to 
the  scene  a  character  peculiarly  English.  Several  beauti- 
ful children  occupied  their  places  at  the  family  board,  whose 
deportment  gave  evidence  of  their  good  breeding,  and  the 
happy  influence  of  private  and  maternal  training  under  the 
check  of  religious  principles. 

After  breakfast,  I  accompanied  C n  to  the  garden, 

spread  round  the  house,  where  the  gravelled  walks,  winding 
their  serpentine  course  through  borders  of  well  trimmed 
shrubs,  and  the  closely  shaven  lawn,  completed  the  picture, 
which  instantly  carried  our  thoughts  homeward. 

The  church  of  St.  Mary  fronts  a  street  a  little  out  of  the 
closest  part  of  the  city.  It  is  cruciform  in  its  plan,  but  un- 
pretending in  its  architectural  design,  and  rather  low.  Sur- 
mounting the  central  elevation  is  a  stone  cross,  announcing 
to  the  by-passer  that  the  building  is  neither  a  Mahomedan 
nor  a  pagan,  nor  (by  its  appropriate  symbol,  the  weuther 
vane)  a  sectarian  place  of  worship,  but  a  Christian  temple, 
belonging  to  the  One  Universal  Church  of  the  Apostles. 
Groups  were  gathered  in  the  pleasant  churchyard  at  the 
time  of  our  arrival,  and  many  had  taken  their  seats  in  the 
consecrated  place  where  the  Trinity  are  worshipped.     It 


st.  mary's  church.  399 

was  the  festival  of  that  Holy  Mystery,  and  the  bishop's  ser- 
mon embraced  a  notice  of  the  sublime  doctrine  of  the  Three 
in  One,  which  he  treated  practically  in  the  evening's  dis- 
course at  three  o'clock. 

The  evening's  service  was  also  celebrated  at  eight  p.  m. 
in  the  chapel  of  St.  Mary's  Hall,  when  the  bishop  summed 
up  the  arguments,  and  enforced  the  exhortations  used  in  his 
previous  discourses ;  adding  an  appeal,  couched  in  most 
feeling  language,  to  his  female  auditors  to  carry  to  their 
closets  the  recollection  of  the  instructions  received  during 
the  day.  At  the  end  of  the  chapel  service  the  young  ladies 
of  the  school,  numbering  about  two  hundred,  each  shook 
hands  with  the  bishop  on  their  way  to  the  supper  room. 

The  pleasing  spectacle  which  this,  and  other  opportunities 
presented  to  me  of  Bishop  Doane's  efforts  to  carry  out  in  his 
diocess  a  system  of  religious  education  on  the  principles  of 
the  Church,  brought  forcibly  to  my  mind  the  eloquent  and 
truthful  sentiments  expressed  in  my  hearing,  during  my  last 
visit  to  England  in  1841,  by  one  of  our  most  catholic  minded 
bishops*  before  the  assembled  thousands  at  the  annual  meet- 
ing of  the  London  Sunday  schools.  With  the  vital  impor- 
tance of  the  following  query  the  republican  prelate  seems 
deeply  impressed : — "  Amidst  all  the  difficulties  and  disad- 
vantages to  which  ill-devised  and  ill-directed  schemes  of 
instruction  are  liable,  some  system  of  education  will  go  for- 
ward. The  great  question  is  not,  therefore,  whether  the 
rising  generation  shall  be  educated,  but  how  it  is  to  be  edu- 
cated ?  Whether  in  sound  Christian  principles,  or  merely 
in  unholy  ones  ?  Or,  if  it  be  at  once  determined — as  Chris- 
tians are  bound  to  determine— that  the  education  shall  be 
Christian  ;  whether  it  shall  be  built  upon  the  foundation 
of  the  Apostles  and  Prophets,  Jesus  Christ  being  the  chief 
♦  The  Bishop  of  Ely,  Dr.  Allen. 


400  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

corner  stone,  as  explained  by  the  Church,  or  as  preached 
by  sectarians  and  enthusiasts  ?" 

Bishop  Doane  has  nobly  encountered  the  popular  view  of 
this  question,  and  the  factious  opposition  of  the  expediency 
advocates  in  the  Church's  ranks,  in  his  own  field  of  opera- 
tion, by  the  establishment  of  a  system  of  parochial  education 
for  the  poor,  on  the  plan  of  the  National  Schools  of  England, 
as  well  as  of  high  schools  for  the  wealthier  classes :  [another 
college  of  preparatory  education  for  boys  having  been  during 
the  present  year  (1836)  commenced  at  Burlington  under 
most  flattering  auspices,  in  addition  to  St.  Mary's  Hall.] 
"  For  we  may  rest  assured,"  was  the  logical  deduction  of 
Bishop  Allen,  "  that  if  we  do  not  exert  ourselves  in  the  good 
work  of  educating  the  poorer  members  of  our  own  com- 
munion in  the  principles  of  our  Church,  and  teach  them  to 
love  it  by  constantly  frequenting  it,  and  by  feeling  they  are 
benefited  by  it,  they  will  be  led  away  from  it,  by  those  who 
are  more  zealous  for  their  sectarian  tenets  than  we  are  for 
the  orthodox  doctrines  of  our  own  Church.  If  good  seed  be 
not  diligently  and  extensively  sown  amongst  them,  the 
enemy  will  sow  tares,  and  the  good  seed  will  be  choked  and 
bring  forth  no  fruit  to  perfection." 

The  Bishop  of  Ely's  emphatic  appeal  to  the  true  amor 
patrice  of  his  auditors  on  the  same  occasion, — of  "  those  who 
loved  their  country ;  who  wished  virtue  and  true  religion 
to  flourish  and  abound  in  it ;  who  would  turn  many  to 
righteousness,  and  in  consequence  of  so  doing  shine  them- 
selves as  the  stars  for  ever  and  ever," — meets,  happily,  with  a 
warm  response  from  more  quarters  than  one  in  the  United 
States  ;  and  in  finding  an  echo  in  the  breasts  of  his  brother 
prelates  of  New  Jersey,  Maryland,  Michigan,  North  Carolina, 
etc.,  proves  them  to  be  the  real  patriots  in  a  community 
where  mere  wordy  and  vaunted  "  patriotism"  is,  notorious- 
ly, a  superabundant  commodity. 


ARTISTS     FIND    SOCIETY.  401 

Amongst  the  objects  of  public  patronage  which  are  espe- 
cially worthy  the  notice  of  a  visitor  to  Philadelphia,  is  the 
Artists'  Fluid  Society ;  a  similar  establishment,  on  a  smaller 
scale,  to  the  Annual  Exhibition  of  native  artists  at  the 
National  Gallery  of  Trafalgar  Square.  The  building  is  in 
Chesnut  Street.  Were  it  consistent  with  the  design  of 
these  notes,  I  should  be  tempted  to  give  a  particular  descrip- 
tion of  its  plan,  with  some  discussion  on  the  relative  merits 
of  the  artistic  contributions  of  this  gallery,  which  I  succes- 
sively visited  during  several  years  of  its  early  existence. 
Among  the  best  I  may  mention  the  names  of  Sully,  Lamb- 
din.  Neagle,  Dickinson,  Barratt  and  Officer,  in  portrait  paint- 
ing ;  and  Holmes,  Peale,  Walker,  Shaw,  Williams  and 
Hamilton,  in  landscape  designs.  Some  small  pieces  by 
Mrs.  Newton  of  Roxborough,  were  worthy  a  place  in  a  more 
national  exhibition  of  design  than  the  Artists'  Fund  Hall  of 
Philadelphia. 

26 


CHAPTER  LVIII. 


A    MOURNING    CHURCH. 

This  wilderness,  the  world  like  that  poetic  world  of  old, 

Bears  one,  and  but  one  branch  of  gold, 

Where  the  blest  spirit  lodges  like  the  dove  ; 

And  which,  to  Heavenly  soil  transplanted,  will  improve, 

To  be,  as  'twas  below,  the  brightest  branch  above  ; 

For  whate'er  theologic  lev'lers  dream, 
There  are  degrees  above  I  know. 
As  well  as  here  below, 

Where  high  patrician  souls  dress'd  heavenly  gay, 
Sit  clad  in  lawn  of  purer  woven  day ; 
There  some  high  Spirit's  throne  to  Sancroft  shall  be  given 
In  the  metropolis  of  Heaven. 

Chief  of  the  mitred  saints,  and  from  arch-prelate  here. 
Translated  to  arch-angel  there. 

Swift. 

On  February  20th,  1843,  the  Church  papers  came  to  us 
dressed  in  mourning.  The  presiding  bishop  had  departed 
this  life  on  the  previous  15th,  in  the  house,  and  in  the  arms 
of  his  suffragan,  and  now  successor  in  the  apostolic  office, 
Bishop  Eastburn.  And  the  American  Church's  appreciation 
of  his  uncommon  worth,  and  her  own  loss,  was  now  evinced 
in  the  unusual  marks  of  regret  and  respect  to  his  memory, 
visible  on  all  sides.  In  several  dioceses  the  interior  of  all 
the  churches  were  hung  with  black,  and  the  clergy  wore 
crape  for  thirty  days,  whilst  in  nearly  every  parish  through- 
out the  country  the  event  was  improved  from  the  pulpit  by 
a  funeral  sermon  or  an  appropriate  address. 

Fortunate  has  it  been  for  the  Church  of  America  that,  in 
God's  providence,  she  has  hitherto  been  under  the  presiden- 
tial control  of  four  such  men  as  Seabury,  Provoost,  White, 


BISHOP    GRISWOLD's    DEATH.  403 

and  Griswold.  The  first  three  led  her  feeble  host  through  the 
storms  of  opposition  and  rebuke  that  followed  to  the  catho- 
lic communion  after  the  Revolution  ;  and  by  their  joint  wis- 
dom, their  moderation,  and  their  most  exemplary  piety,  they 
disarmed  the  opponents  of  episcopacy,  and  successively  pre- 
siding during  the  period  of  the  Church's  early  struggles, 
piloted  her  children  into  the  full  possession  of  the  promised 
land.  Their  office  (descending  by  seniority  of  consecration) 
devolved  on  Bishop  Griswold  at  Bishop  White's  death  :  he 
may  well  be  said  to  have  caught  the  mantle  of  his  predeces- 
sor who  had  held  the  post  forty-one  years.  Bishop  Griswold 
succeeded  to  his  primacy  in  1836,  having  then  been  Bishop 
of  the  Eastern  diocess  twenty-five  years.  He  presided  at 
two  General  Conventions. 

One  of  his  brother  bishops*  paid  his  memory  the  follow- 
ing just  tribute  in  announcing  the  melancholy  event  of  his 
death  to  his  diocesan  flock : — 

"  The  venerable  prelate  who  has  thus  passed  from  among 
us  was  a  man  of  primitive  simplicity  and  piety.  Through 
a  long  life,  he  gave  wholly  to  his  master's  service  rare  en- 
dowments of  mind,  and  rare  attainments  in  learning, 
acquired  under  great  and,  to  an  ordinary  man,  discouraging 
disadvantages.  There  has  seldom  been  so  indefatigable  a 
student !  He  was  one  of  the  few  in  this  or  any  country 
who  could  read,  understand,  or  enjoy  the  great  work  of  La 
Place,  as  made  accessible  by  our  own  Bowditch.  As  a 
parish  priest  he  was  a  pattern  of  pastoral  diligence  and 
fidelity ;  and  through  his  long  episcopate,  even  to  the  latest 
of  his  days,  he  continued  abundant  in  labours ;  not  sparing 
himself  that  he  might  feed  the  flock  of  which  the  Holy 
Ghost  had  made  him  overseer.  As  presiding  bishop,  the 
Church  is  indebted  to  him  for  two  Pastoral  Letters  of  the 
House  of  Bishops  ;  the  latter  of  which,  that  for  1841,  is  a 

*  Doane. 


404        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

document  of  the  highest  value,*  and  will  testify  to  the 
remotest  generations,  his  firm  adherence  to  the  catholic 
faith,  and  his  fearlessness  and  force  in  its  assertion.  He 
has  gone  from  us  in  a  good  old  age,  as  a  shock  of  corn 
when  it  is  fully  ripe." 

The  place  and  manner  of  Bishop  Griswold's  death  were 
both  remarkable,  and  have  given  rise  to  much  comment 
and  improvement.  The  following  picture  of  that  last 
scene,  drawn  at  his  funeral  in  Trinity  Church  by  his  suc- 
cessor in  the  apostolic  office,  the  present  Bishop  of  Massa- 
chusetts, is  too  graphic  to  be  withheld  : — 

'•'  Amidst  the  shock  which  we  have  all  experienced,  by 
this  startling  termination  of  the  earthly  ministry  of  our 
revered  Ruler  and  Guide,  will  not  every  voice  unite,  with 
one  consent,  in  the  exclamation,  that  the  exit  of  him  whose 
remains  now  lie  in  our  view, — whether  that  exit  be  con- 
sidered in  reference  to  the  precise  period  of  his  life  when  it 
was  made  ;  to  the  spot  on  which  it  was  witnessed ;  or  to 
the  manner  in  which  his  sainted  spirit  took  its  flight, — is 
marked  throughout  by  circumstances  of  almost  unparalleled 
sublimity  and  beauty  ?  Let  us  contemplate  together,  for 
a  few  moments,  this  striking  spectacle.  As  if  to  call  our 
hearts,  in  a  more  than  ordinary  manner,  to  a  sense  of  the 
presence  and  the  providence  of  God,  it  pleased  Him  to  take 
to  himself  our  departed  Overseer,  within  a  few  short  days 
after  the  consummation  of  a  wish  which  had  occupied  the 
thoughts  of  our  venerated  Head  through  long  previous 
years.  The  desire  of  his  soul  had  just  been  accomplished. 
He  had  seen  the  council  of  his  diocese,  which  had  been  as- 
sembled at  his  own  earnest  summons,  meeting  in  harmoni- 
ous brotherhood,  and  appointing  his  official  successor.  He 
had  received  the  kind  voice  of  confirmation  to  this  choice 
from  the   near  and  the  distant  portions  of  that   spiritual 

*  From  this  letter  copious  extracts  are  given  in  chapter  LIII. 


BISHOP    GRISWOLD's    DEATH.  405 

Body,  of  which  we  are  a  parcel  and  a  part.  And,  when  all 
these  preparatory  measures  had  been  completed,  he  had,  in 
company  with  some  of  his  brethren  in  office,  and  in  the 
presence  of  his  assembled  clergy,  performed  the  last  finish- 
ing and  apostolic  ceremonial,  within  the  precincts  of  this 
consecrated  temple.  And  now,  having  been  permitted  to 
behold  all  things  done,  he  walks  to  and  fro,  for  a  few 
weeks,  in  the  midst  of  us  ;  and  then,  in  the  fulness  of 
years,  he  passes  instantly  away,  and  enters  into  an  ever- 
lasting rest  from  all  his  labours.  And,  to  invest  with  still 
farther  interest  and  solemnity  the  closing  moments  of  his 
career,  it  is  so  ordered,  in  the  course  of  Providence,  that  his 
spirit  shall  escape  from  its  earthly  prison-house  beneath  the 
very  roof  of  him,  who  had  been  destined  to  stand  in  his 
room,  and  to  continue  his  labours,  and  thus,  by  a  most  sin- 
gular concurrence  of  circumstances,  the  father  lays  down 
his  dust,  literally  speaking,  at  the  feet  of  the  son.  But  the 
glorious  picture  is  not  yet  completed.  You  have  seen  this 
good  old  man  separated  from  those  over  whom  he  presided, 
immediately  after  the  fulfilment  of  his  dearest  wish  and 
prayer.  You  have  seen  him  yielding  up  the  ghost  within 
the  actual  dwelling  of  his  successor  in  duty.  And  now. 
how  does  he  die?  Could  any  departure  have  been 
imagined,  more  entirely  in  harmony  with  the  previous  tenor 
of  his  character  and  life  ?  After  a  lengthened  course  of 
calm  and  meek  exertion,  he  resigns,  without  a  struggle,  his 
ransomed  soul  into  the  arms  of  his  Redeemer.  He  sweetly 
falls  asleep  in  Christ.  And  as  I  stood  over  that  noble  and 
majestic  form,  and  watched  the  almost  imperceptible  ebbing 
of  existence  as  it  hastened  to  its  close,  I  could  not  but  in- 
wardly exclaim  to  myself,  in  the  feeling,  though  not  in  the 
language,  of  the  bard  of  life,  death,  and  immortality : — 

"  '  Starts  timid  nature  at  the  gloomy  pass  1 

The  soft  transition  call  it;  and  be  cheered''  " 


406  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

Bishop  Eastburn's  tribute  to  the  humility  and  quiet  vir- 
tues of  his  episcopal  predecessor  will  complete  a  portrait, 
which  cannot  fail  to  interest  in  a  strong  degree  the  catholic 
readers  of  this  country  : — 

"  My  personal  recollection  of  our  venerated  bishop  dates 
from  the  period  of  my  early  youth.  Thrown  into  his 
society,  at  that  time,  by  circumstances  of  a  most  interest- 
ing character,  a  near  view  was  thus  afforded  me,  at  this 
season  of  my  opening  life  of  that  wonderfully  '  meek  and 
quiet  spirit,'  which  accompanied  him  at  all  times,  and 
through  all  places ;  and  it  is  impossible  for  me  ever  to  lose 
the  impression  which  it  produced.  It  was  this  quality,  in 
truth,  that  gave  such  attractive  beauty  to  his  fine  coun- 
tenance, which  had  an  expression  upon  it  such  as  we  fre- 
quently see  upon  the  canvass,  in  the  embodied  conceptions 
of  the  great  masters ;  but  which  we  seldom  witness  in  our 
daily  walks  among  men.  That  the  habitual  feeling  of 
that  sainted  man,  whose  loss  we  are  now  deploring,  was 
one  of  entire  self-renunciation,  all  who  knew  him  will  bear 
witness  ;  and  how  instructive  for  us  to  survey  such  an  ex- 
ample, in  a  world  where  eminent  models  in  that  depart- 
ment of  Christian  virtue  are  so  rarely  to  be  found,  I  need 
not  surely  remind  you.  To  this  spirit  of  humiliation  the 
whole  current  of  the  world  is  so  utterly  opposed,  that  it  is 
considered  as  of  slight  account  in  men's  estimate  of  human 
excellence.  And  yet  who  can  forget,  that,  when  our  Divine 
Master  pronounces  his  beatitudes  upon  the  mountain,  he 
numbers  this  same  lowly  mind  among  the  most  resplendent 
endowments  of  the  creature  ;  and  holds  it  up  to  our  con- 
templation as  the  object  of  his  choicest  benediction.  "Bless- 
ed are  the  meek  ;  for  they  shall  inherit  the  earth  ;"  "  Bless- 
ed are  the  poor  in  spirit ;  for  theirs  is  the  kingdom  of 
Heaven."  Or  how  can  we  likewise  forget,  that  this  hum- 
bleness of  soul,  so  little  esteemed  by  a  vain  and  self-seek- 


BISHOP    GRIS WOLD'S    DEATH.  407 

ing  world,  is  the  very  mind  that  was  in  Christ;  'who, 
being  in  the  form  of  God,  made  himself  of  no  reputation, 
and  took  upon  him  the  form  of  a  servant?'  To  this 
chastened  and  unpretending  spirit,  therefore,  so  pre-emi- 
nently characteristic  of  the  departed  servant  of  God,  whose 
remains  are  now  before  us,  let  our  thoughts  be  turned  this 
day.  Let  us  seek  to  form  it  within  ourselves  as  he  formed 
it, — by  daily  walking  with  God,  in  the  secret  and  subduing 
exercises  of  meditation  and  prayer.  There  was  something 
majestic  in  the  simplicity  of  that  venerable  man  ;  some- 
thing which,  while  it  awakened  love,  kept  at  a  distance  all 
profane  intrusion,  and  compelled  from  others  that  deference 
which  was  his  due  ;  something  which  one  could  never  be 
in  the  presence  of  without  an  immediate  consciousness  of 
beholding  the  perfect  exemplification  of  that  sentence,  '  He 
that  humbleth  himself  shall  be  exalted.' " 

The  following  was  Bishop  Chase's  notice  of  his  brother 
prelate's  death,  in  a  letter  addressed  to  a  clergyman  of 
Philadelphia  : — - 

"  Yesterday  the  news  of  the  death  of  our  senior  bishop 
arrived  in  our  midst.  I  speak  so  because  of  our  little,  com- 
pact, fraternal,  and  insulated  character.  When  the  mail 
arrives  we  hail  it  as  the  messenger  of  good  or  ill  to  us  all : 
for  what  affects  one  moves  the  whole  ;  and  often  is  heard 
the  prayer,  that  God  would  enable  us  to  bear  the  ill,  as  well 
as  give  us  grace  to  keep  us  humble  under  the  effects  of  good 
tidings.  If  I  remember  right,  yesterday  I  had  forgotten  to 
pray  in  this  manner,  when  the  papers  were  all  poured  out  of 
Jubilee  mail  bag  on  my  table.  I  say  I  had  forgotten  to 
pray, — '  Merciful  Lord  enable  me  to  submit  with  resignation 
to  whatever  of  woe  may  be  herein  contained,'  when  the 
Boston  paper  was  discovered  to  be  in  mourning.  It  was 
immediately  opened,  and  my  wife  exclaimed — '  Bishop 
Griswold  is  dead  !' — It  was  indeed  so  :  our  dear  dear  senior 


408  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

bishop  has,  indeed,  passed  suddenly  to  his  high  reward. 
The  short  story  told  in  the  '  Witness '  was  read  and  re- 
echoed from  mouth  to  mouth,  till  the  whole  number  of  our 
faithful  ones  were  in  possession  of  all  that  now  could  be 
known  of  this  melancholy  event, — for  such  it  is  to  me.  I 
knew  Bishop  Griswold — I  believe  he  is  in  Paradise.  But  I 
know  also  myself ;  and  the  consequent  miserable  exchange 
the  Church  must  sustain  in  receiving  me  in  the  place  of  so 
good,  and  great  a  man.  Oh,  God  of  mercy,  take  pity  on 
thine  elect  one — thine  own  Apostolic  Church— thine  es- 
poused bride  ;  whose  garments  when  steeped  in  the  blood 
of  martyrs,  thou  hast  so  often  cleansed  in  thine  own  atoning 
blood  !" 

Another  brother  remarked — "  Our  departed  friend  and 
father  was  ready  to  be  offered.  He  had  fought  a  good  fight 
— he  had  kept  the  faith.  All  things  in  the  diocess  over 
which  he  presided  were  '  set  in  order.'  But  six  weeks  ago 
a  man  after  the  bishop's  own  heart  was  consecrated  to  as- 
sist and  succeed  him  in  the  apostolic  office ;  and,  by  a  sin- 
gular providence,  the  venerable  prelate  lays  himself  down 
to  die  in  the  study  of  his  successor,  as  though  he  came  to 
leave  his  mantle  with  his  younger  brother,  and  to  resign  to 
him  with  his  own  hands  the  commission  which  he  had  so 
long  and  so  faithfully  discharged." 

"  Yes,  the  good  old  man  is  gone, 
He  is  gone  to  his  saintly  rest, 
Where  no  sorrow  can  be  known, 

And  no  trouble  can  molest ; 
For  his  crown  of  life  is  won, 

And  the  dead  in  Christ  are  bless'd." 

Most  truly,  when  the  sainted  Griswold  gave  up  the  ghost 
a  great  man  fell  in  Israel  !  A  man  great  in  intellectual 
powers,  great  in  learning,  great  in  his  untiring  efforts 
in  the  cause  of  Christianity,  great  for  his  piety  and  holy 


BISHOP    GRISWOLl/s     DEATH.  409 

zeal,  great  as  a  prelate  of  the  Church, — in  his  primitive 
life,  and  the  abundance  of  his  apostolic  labours, — and  pre- 
eminently great  in  that  singular  humility  which  was  the 
crowning  grace  of  his  character.  His  eloquence — so  nat- 
ural and  so  winning  on  the  attention  of  his  hearers — and 
his  varied  gifts  as  a  divine  and  a  Christian  teacher  were, 
however,  as  remarkable  as  this  shining  grace ;  and  well  is 
it  for  the  Catholic  Church  of  America  that  he  is  succeeded 
in  his  responsible  office  by  one  who  so  closely  copies  that 
humility,  and  possesses,  also,  so  large  a  share  of  industry 
and  patient  perseverance.  No  one,  in  the  whole  company 
of  her  spiritual  fathers,  was  better  fitted  to  preside  in  the 
Church  councils.  Though  moderate  and  mild,  he  was  yet 
firm  if  occasion  required  ;  he  cared  not  for  the  face  of  man 
whilst  engaged  in  his  Master's  work.  How  faithful  he  was 
with  his  own  clergy,  his  numerous  conventional  addresses, 
and  episcopal  charges  bear  testimony.  No  bishop,  from  the 
apostles  downwards,  has  been  more  beloved  by  his  clergy, 
and  this  love  was  felt  by  all  who  were  placed  under  his 
spiritual  guardianship.  In  his  death  the  Church  of  Ameri- 
ca was  wounded  at  the  heart !  Like  the  solitary  city,  be- 
come a  widow,  it  could  be  said  of  her,  Her  tears  are  on  her 
cheeks  ;  she  smites  her  breasts  in  desolation,  her  priests 
sigh,  her  virgins  arc  afflicted,  and  she  is  in  bitterness. 

"  Kind  star !  still  may'st  thou  shed  thy  sacred  influence  here, 

Or  from  thy  private  peaceful  orb  appear ; 
For  sure  we  want  some  guide  from  Heaven,  to  show 

The  way  which  every  wand'ring  fool  below 

Pretends  so  perfectly  to  know. 
Mistaken  idiots !  see  how  giddily  they  run  ; 

Led  blindly  on  by  avarice,  or  pride — 

What  mighty  numbers  follow  them, 

Each  fond  of  erring  with  his  guide." 


CHAPTER  LIX. 

REMOVAL     TO    MARYLAND. A     "PUSEYITE"     RECTOR. 

"CHAPEL     ROYAL"     AT     WASHINGTON. ROCKVILLE. 

THE    CHURCH    IN    MARYLAND. 

In  the  summer  of  1844,  I  received  a  joint  invitation  from 
the  vestry  of  Rockville  parish  in  Maryland,  and  the  bishop 
of  that  diocess,  to  succeed  an  old  incumbent  who  was  trans- 
ferred to  the  rectorship  of  a  parish  in  the  city  of  Washing- 
ton, from  which  Rockville  is  fourteen  miles  distant.  I 
readily  responded  to  this  invitation,  as  my  friend  Jansen  had 
now  left  Manayunk,  having  received  an  appointment  to  a 
more  lucrative  post  in  Tennessee,  through  the  interest  of 
his  brother-in-law  Dr.  (now  Bishop  Freeman.)  We  had 
already  directed  our  eyes  to  the  more  genial  atmosphere  of 
Maryland,  and  the  appointment  was  regarded  as  very  oppor- 
tune. Nor  were  we  disappointed  in  any  of  our  expectations. 
Maryland  more  nearly  resembles  England  in  its  climate, 
and  (notwithstanding  the  institution  of  slavery)  in  the  gen- 
eral framework  of  its  domestic  and  social  institutions,  than 
any  section  of  the  Union,  the  cities  of  Boston  and  Newport 
excepted.  The  customs  of  its  fust  settlers,  and  the  high 
tone  of  character  they  gave  to  its  infant  society,  still  exist 
in  the  upper  and  middle  classes,  untouched  even  by  the 
shock  of  the  Revolution,  and  the  political  changes  to  which 
that  event  is  constantly  giving  rise. 

I  passed  a  few  days  at  the  bishop's  residence  in  Baltimore, 
and  several  more  at  Elkton,  Cockeysville,  and  Washington, 


MARYLAND. 


411 


before  taking  charge  of  my  parish.     Mr.  Goldsborough,  the 
rector  of  Trinity,  Elkton,  is  one  of  the  most  active  clergy- 
men of  the  diocess.     He  has  been  singularly  successful  in 
reviving  the  condition  of  a  large  and  populous  parish,  em- 
bracing two  congregations,  by  whom  he  is  deservedly  beloved. 
It  is  one  of  the  parishes  in  which  the  provisions  of  the  Church 
are  fully  carried  out,  and  the  rubrical  directions  of  the  prayer- 
book  are  followed  on  occasions  of  public  worship  verbatim 
et  literatim.     Their  admirable  propriety,  and  the  superior 
effect  upon  the  worshippers,  was  agreeably  manifested  on 
several  occasions  of  public  worship  at  which  I  was  present. 
The  substitution  of  the  Church  system,  in  every  part  of 
parochial  economy,  for  the  "  old"  (?)  system  of  innovations, 
has  in  this  case  resulted  in  a  large  increase  of  activity  and 
spiritual  prosperity  amongst  the  parishioners,  and  that  in  a 
soil  of  singular  sterility.     Such  results  have  appeared  in 
each  instance  where  the  same  course— the  only  honest  one- 
has  been  pursued.     Of  what  importance  then  are  the  igno- 
rant and  factious  cavils  of  semi-dissenting  objectors  ? 

At  Cockeysville,  I  found  a  hearty  welcome  under  the  roof 
of  Mr.  Callahan,  the  rector.  This  parish,  previously  in  a 
declining  condition  under  the  "old"  system,  and  an  "  evan- 
gelical" regimen,  was  fast  awakening  from  the  long-drawn 
slumber  of  anti-"  tractarian "  torpor,  under  the  energetic 
superintendence  of  the  excellent  rector.  Mr.  Callahan  is  a 
sound  scholar,  and  biblical  critic.  He  was  elected  to  the 
wealthier  and  more  populous  parish  of  "  William  and  Mary," 
just  before  my  withdrawal  from  the  country.  May  God,  in 
mercy,  grant  that  his  disconsolate  people  in  Baltimore  county, 
may  be  saved  from  any  declension  from  the  fervour  of  their 

first  love  ! 

In  Washington  I  met  a  former  acquaintance  in  the  worthy 
rector  of  St.  John's,  from  whom  I  received  a  renewal  of 
kindness.     I  found  him  much  changed  in  appearance,  and 


412  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

labouring  under  an  attack  of  fever,  the  result  of  exposure  to 
the  rays  of  a  powerful  sun,  which  made  him  request  me  to 
fill  his  place  in  St.  John's  church  on  the  Sunday  following 
my  arrival  in  the  city.*  The  church  stands  in  President 
square,  facing  the  executive  mansion.  In  the  morning  the 
president  and  his  daughter,  with  several  of  the  cabinet,  and 
a  large  number  of  government  officers,  were  amongst  the 
worshippers.  The  British  minister,  Mr.  Pakenham,  occu- 
pied the  pew  which  has  from  the  first  erection  of  the  build- 
ing belonged  to  our  representative.  In  this  church  a  recent 
judicious  alteration  has  banished  the  useless  reading-desk. 
The  whole  service  is  performed  at  the  altar,  and  a  lecturn 
in  the  front  centre  serves  the  celebrant  both  for  lessons  and 
sermon-stand.  This  arrangement  possesses  the  advantage 
of  extreme  simplicity,  as  well  adapted  to  a  church  or  chapel 
of  limited  proportions ;  especially  as  the  lecturn  (unlike  the 
cumbrous  pile  of  carpenter's  work — those  fearful  eye-sores — - 
in  front  of  many  English  chancels,  with  their  three  square 
boxes  rising  picturesquely  one  above  the  other,  for  the  use 
of  preacher,  reader  and  clerk,)  presents  no  perceptible  obstruc- 
tion to  the  view  of  God's  altar. 

The  parish  of  which  I  now  took  charge  was  formerly 
within  the  limits  of  St.  John's,  Washington.  With  the  for- 
mation of  the  chapelry  in  1719  the  "  Book  of  Records " 
begins.  There  were  two  rectors  before  the  revolutionary 
war,t  when  the  Rev.  Thomas  Read  took  charge  of  the 

*  Mr.  Hawley  died  a  few  months  after  the  above  date,  after  a  ministry  of 
thirty  years  in  Washington.  Whilst  recording  my  acquaintance  with  him,  I 
cannot  withhold  a  passing  tribute  to  the  names  of  Pyne,  Gilliss,  French,  and 
Harris,  clergymen  of  that  city;  from  each  of  whom  I  received  the  kindest  atten- 
tions, the  more  gratifying  grom  their  being  purely  voluntary.  Such  I  can 
guarantee  to  any  clergyman  from  this  country  who  may  visit  the  American 
capital. 

*  The  Rev.  George  Murdock,  "inducted"  (by  the  governor)  in  1726,  and 
the  Rev.  Alexander  Williamson,  inducted  in  1761. 


THE  CHURCH  IN  MARYLAND.  413 

parish,  which  he  held  for  forty  years ;  during  which  time, 
as  appears  from  a  minute  in  his  own  handwriting,  he  had 
only  been  absent  from  it  thirty  months.  A  commendable 
instance  of  ministerial  fidelity,  and  the  more  remarkable  in 
America  from  its  extreme  rarity.* 

The  history  of  the  Church  in  Maryland  is  coeval  with  its 
existence  as  a  province  and  an  independent  state.  The 
liberal  and  enlightened  policy  of  Lord  Baltimore—"  the  wis- 
dom of  which,"  writes  Dr.  Hawks,  "  was  the  more  remarka- 

*  Mr.  Read  was  succeeded  in  the  rectorship  by  the  Rev.  Alfred  Henry  Dash- 
ields,  when  the  parishioners  being  increasingly  dissatisfied  with  the  location  of 
the  church  (two  miles  from  Rockvffle,  on  the  Baltimore  road),  commenced  a 
subscription  for  the  erection  of  a  new  one.  Before  this  design  could  be  earned 
into  effect  Mr.  Dashields  withdrew  from  the  parish,  in  August,  1817.  The  pro- 
ject of  changing  the  situation  of  the  church  was,  however,  soon  renewed  by  the 
vestry,  and  a  committee  appointed  to  examine  the  old  building  and  report  on  the 
subject.  In  1820  the  Rev.  Thomas  G.  Allen,  now  of  Philadelphia,  was  elected ; 
and  the  project  of  "a  church  in  Rockvffle  "was  prosecuted  with  spirit.  A 
grant  of  land  in  an  eligible  situation  was  conveyed  by  Solomon  Holland,  Esq., 
upon  which  the  present  substantial  and  commodious  structure  stands. 

In  March,  1828,  Mr.  Allen  withdrew,  to  become  assistant-minister  of  St. 
Paul's  in  Philadelphia;  and  the  Rev.  Henry  C.  Knight,  of  the  diocess  of 
Massachusetts,  was  appointed  to  the  pastoral  charge.  He  held  it  for  one  year, 
when  the  Rev.  Levin  J.  Gilliss  assumed  the  rectorship,  and  retained  it  fourteen 

years. 

Mr.  Gilliss'  term  of  residence  in  Rockville  appears  to  have  been  marked  by 
great  harmony  amongst  his  numerous  parishioners,  whose  attachment  to  him 
was  the  result  of  his  zeal  for  their  spiritual  welfare,  and  the  uniform  kindness 
and  urbanity  of  his  deportment  (of  which  I  had  repeated  examples  during  my 
occasional  intercourse  with  him).  His  name  and  character  will  be  long  cher- 
ished by  his  former  people  with  affectionate  regard.  During  the  period  of  his 
residence  in  Rockville,  the  parishioners  erected  a  commodious  and  tastefully  ar- 
ranged parsonage.  The  land  on  which  it  stands  was  the  gift  of  the  Hon.  Judge 
Kilgour  (now  deceased),  a  liberal  friend  of  the  Church.  The  family  of  Kilgours 
are°of  Scottish  origin,  and  descended  from  the  learned  and  pious  Bishop  Kil- 
gour, primate  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  predecessor  of  the  late  Bishop  Skin- 
ner (the  present  Bishop  Skinner's  father)  in  the  see  of  Aberdeen  and  the  prima- 
cy. Bishop  Kilgour,  it  will  be  recollected,  was  Bishop  Seabury's  chief  consecra- 
tor  in  1784,  by  which  act  the  American  Church  first  acquired  its  complete  form. 


414 


ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 


ble  as  it  was  far  in  advance  of  the  spirit  of  the  age"- — encour- 
aged the  emigration  to  the  new  colony  of  numerous  members 
of  the  Church  of  England,  and  the  protestant  sects  from 
Virginia  and  the  mother  country,  who  in  time  outnumbered 
the  adherents  of  the  Roman  see.  In  1664  an  Act  passed  by 
the  Assembly  against  blasphemy  and  profanity,  describes  a 
motley  brood :  "  Schismatic,  Idolater,  Puritan,  Lutheran, 
Calvinist,  Anabaptist,  Brownist,  Antinomian,  Barrowist, 
Roundhead,"  &c.  The  moral  aspect  of  society  does  not 
seem  to  have  improved  with  the  multiplication  of  sects,  if  a 
letter  addressed  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Yeo  to  the  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury  in  the  year  1675  may  be  relied  on.  He  writes : 
"  The  province  of  Maryland  is  in  a  deplorable  condition  for 
want  of  an  established  ministry.  Here  are  ten  or  twelve 
counties,  and  in  them,  at  least,  twenty  thousand  souls,  and 
but  three  Protestant  ministers  of  the  Church  of  England. 
The  [Romish]  priests  are  provided  for,  and  the  quakers  take 
care  of  those  that  are  speakers  ;  but  no  care  is  taken  to  build 
up  churches  in  the  protestant  religion.  The  Lord's  day  is 
profaned,  religion  is  despised,  and  all  notorious  vices  are 
committed,  so  that  it  has  become  a  Sodom  of  uncleanness 
and  a  pest-house  of  iniquity.  As  Lord  Baltimore  is  gone  to 
England,  I  have  made  bold  to  address  this  to  your  grace,  to 
beg  that  your  grace  would  be  pleased  to  solicit  him  for  some 
established  support  for  a  protestant  ministry." 

The  want  of  sufficient  support  for  protestant  ministers, 
and  the  high  official  distinction  many  Romanists  deservedly 
held,  and  which  they  had  never  abused,  did  not,  however, 
warrant  the  grossly  unjust  act  of  King  Charles  the  Second, 
who  ordered  the  proprietary  "  to  put  all  the  offices  into  the 
hands  of  the  protestants."  The  cry  of  "  No  Popery  ! "  had 
been  raised  in  the  province,  provoked  by  the  religious  con- 
tentions in  England  on  this  subject,  and  Charles  was  very 
willing  to  seize  upon  this,  or  any  thing  else,  which  furnished 


THE  CHURCH  IN  MARYLAND.  415 

him  with  a  pretext  for  taking  away  the  charter  of  the  pro- 
prietary. Be  that  as  it  may,  as  spoil  as  Sir  Lionel  Copley, 
the  protestant  governor,  arrived,  in  1692,  the  first  act  of  the 
Assembly,  after  a  recognition  of  the  royal  authority  of  Wil- 
liam and  Mary,  was  to  pass  a  bill  "  for  the  service  of  Almighty 
God,  and  the  establishment  of  the  Protestant  religion  in  the 
province  of  Maryland."  This  law  provided,  that  "  the 
Church  of  England  should  have  and  enjoy  all  her  rights, 
liberties,  and  franchises  wholly  inviolable,  as  they  then  were, 
or  thereafter  should  be  established  by  law ;  that  the  several 
counties  should  be  laid  out  into  parishes,  and  that  a  record 
of  the  metes  and  bounds  thereof  should  be  deposited  with 
the  several  county  courts,  and  also  with  the  governor  and 
council ;  that  the  freeholders  of  each  parish  should  meet 
and  appoint  six  vestrymen  ;  that  a  tax  of  forty  pounds  of 
tobacco  per  poll  should  be  laid  on  each  taxable  person  in  the 
province,  and  that  the  sheriffs  should  collect  the  same ;  that 
from  the  proceeds  of  this  tax  the  vestries  of  the  several 
parishes  in  which  there  were  no  churches  built  should  forth- 
with cause  houses  of  worship  to  be  erected,  after  which  the 
tax  was  to  be  applied  to  the  support  of  the  minister ;  but  if 
no  minister  had  been  inducted,  then  to  be  applied  by  the 
vestrymen  to  the  necessary  repairs  of  the  churches,  or  other 
pious  uses  in  their  discretion."*  The  vestries  were  also 
made  bodies  corporate  to  receive  and  hold  property ;  and  it 
was  provided  also,  probably  to  secure  perpetuity  to  the  sys- 
tem adopted,  that  each  vestry  should  have  power  to  fill  all 
vacancies  occurring  in  it. 

Thus  Anglo-Episcopacy  became  the  established  religion 
of  the  province. 

Under  this  statute,  the  ten  counties  of  the  province  were 
divided  geographically  into  thirty-one  parishes.  An  arrival 
of  clergymen  from  England  supplied  those  newly  formed, 

*  Hawks's  "  Ecclesiastical  Contributions,"  vol.  ii. 


416        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

and  the  machinery  of  a  state  Church  was  actively  put  into 
operation  by  the  executive.  Though  there  are  some  evils 
inseparable  from  this  kind  of  alliance,  and  the  constitution 
of  that  general  government,  of  which  Maryland  is  now  only 
a  federal  branch,  is  framed  on  principles  which  forbid,  and 
make  impracticable,  a  rejunction  of  the  civil  and  religious 
office,  yet  truth  obliges  the  historian  to  record  that  the 
Church  once  established  in  Maryland,  both  in  its  early 
operations,  in  the  fulness  of  its  growth  as  a  state-establish- 
ment, and  in  its  later  fruits,  gathered  from  the  maturity  of 
those  seeds  so  plentifully  and  assiduously  sown  before  she 
was  humbled  in  the  dust,  proved  most  eminently  a  blessing 
to  the  community,  and  was  the  spiritual  mother  of  many 
thousands,  whose  children  or  descendants,  however  since 
tossed  about  by  the  ever-conflicting  winds  of  schism,  will 
yet  bear  testimony  to  the  maternal  care  with  which  she 
tended  those  entrusted  to  her  guardianship.  Her  gold, 
seven  times  purified,  shews  now,  in  her  renewed  youth, 
brighter  than  when  supported  by  the  law,  sanctified  by 
persecution,  and  meetcr  for  the  Master's  use. 

With  the  return  of  peace  after  the  revolutionary  war,  the 
remaining  clergy  made  laudable  and  self-sacrificing  exer- 
tions to  recover  the  lost  ground  occasioned  by  its  distractions 
and  the  accompanying  inroads  of  sectarianism,  whose 
preachers  had  drawn  off  a  number  of  families  from  their 
attachment  to  the  Church.  The  old  complaint  made  by  the 
clergy  of  Maryland  was  again  renewed,  viz.  "  that  there 
were  a  sort  of  travelling  pretenders  to  preaching  that  came 
from  New  England,  and  other  places,  which  delude,  not 
only  the  protestant  dissenters  from  our  Church,  but  many 
of  the  Churchmen  themselves,  by  their  extemporary  prayers 
and  preachments,  for  which  they  are  admitted  by  the  people, 
and  get  money  of  them."* 

*  In  a  letter  found  by  Dr.  Hawks,  in  the  archives  of  Lambeth  Palace. 


THE  CHURCH  IN  MARYLAND.  417 

Times,  it  is  true,  are  changed  !  Though  the  latter  part 
of  this  plaint  is  correct  enough,  yet  the  dissenting  ministers 
of  Maryland  now  number  amongst  them  many  who  are 
more  than  mere  "  pretenders  to  preaching" — eloquent  ex- 
pounders, possessing  respectable  scholarship.  It  may,  how- 
ever, be  stated,  that  the  number  of  seceding  sects  has  since 
increased  in  that  one  section  of  the  United  States  from 
about  five  to  fifty,  differing  more  widely  from  each  other 
than  the  first  separatists  differed  from  the  Church  which 
they  left :  a  strong  argument  for  those  who  have  adhered  to 
Apostolic  Order  to  continue  steadfast  in  ';  the  old  paths  and 
the  good  way." 

The  amended  act  of  the  legislature,  incorporating  :'  the 
Episcopal  church  of  Maryland,"  strikes  out  of  the  old  stat- 
ute all  the  articles  which  connected  it  with  the  state  as  a 
civil  institution.  Vestries  are  chosen  in  the  same  way,  the 
oath  being  differently  worded.  Vestry  meetings  are  to  be 
held  on  the  first  Monday  in  February,  May,  August,  and 
November,  at  eleven  o'clock,  a.m.  The  rector  is  a  member 
of  the  vestry  and  chairman  thereof,  with  power  to  call  spe- 
cial meetings.  The  powers  of  churchwardens,  as  civil 
officers  of  the  peace,  inspectors  of  tocacco,  &c,  were  taken 
away,  and  their  duties  limited  to  the  preservation  of  the 
peace  in  the  church  and  chapels  of  the  parish,  and  lifting 
the  oblations  at  the  communion.  Elections  for  vestrymen 
and  churchwardens  to  be  held,  as  before,  on  Easter  Monday. 
"  Every  free  white  male  citizen  above  twenty-one  years  of 
age,  resident  of  the  parish  where  he  offers  his  vote  six 
months  next  preceding  the  day  of  election,  and  a  member 
of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  and  who  shall  also 
contribute  to  the  charges  of  the  said  parish  in  which  he 
offers  to  vote,"  &c.,  has  a  right  of  suffrage  in  said  election. 

The  old  parish  bounds  remain,  except  where  the  Diocesan 
Convention,    at   the   request   of  adjoining   parishes,  alters 

27 


418  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

them  ;  and  the  parochial  rights  of  the  rectors  are  secured  in 
Maryland  by  the  double  protection  of  the  ecclesiastical  and 
civil  law.  The  former  in  her  thirty-first  canon  makes  it 
penal  for  "one  clergyman  belonging  to  this  Church  fo 
officiate,  either  by  preaching,  reading  prayers,  or  otherwise, 
in  the  parish  or  within  the  parochial  cure  of  another  clergy- 
man, unless  he  have  received  express  permission  for  that 
purpose  from  the  minister  of  the  parish  or  cure  ;  or,  in  his 
absence,  from  the  churchwardens  and  vestrymen  ;"  and 
the  latter  subjects  the  party  who  violates  its  provisions  to  a 
penalty  of  eight  dollars  for  each  offence,  "  recoverable  be- 
fore any  justice  of  the  peace,  to  be  applied  to  the  use  of  the 
parish  in  such  manner  as  the  vestry  may  direct." 

Under  a  succession  of  catholic  bishops,  pre-eminently  dis- 
tinguished amongst  her  sister-diocesses  for  their  learning 
and  the  vigour  of  their  administration,  the  Maryland  Church 
has,  since  receiving  an  episcopal  head,  "  lengthened  her  cords 
and  strengthened  her  stakes."  The  present  excellent  pre- 
late who  presides  over  her  destinies,  reports  to  the  last  Gen- 
eral Convention  a  hundred  clergymen  ;  five  of  them  instruc- 
tors in  incorporated  seminaries  of  learning,  and  six,  teachers 
of  classical  schools,  in  addition  to  ministerial  duty.  Since 
called  to  the  high  office  which  he  has,  with  such  remark- 
able wisdom  and  prudence,  filled,  twenty-five  deacons  have 
been  admitted  to  the  priesthood,  sixteen  candidates  have 
been  ordained  deacons,  and  there  are  eighteen  candidates 
now  on  the  list.  There  are  118  churches,  many  of  them 
elegant  structures  of  stone,  affording  accommodation  for 
37,500  persons.  Eleven  churches  are  now  building,  and 
eleven  new  churches  now  awaiting  consecration.  There 
are  parsonages  in  twenty-nine  parishes  and  glebes  in  six- 
teen, varying  in  size  from  six  to  600  acres  ;  3793  Sunday- 
school  children,  under  strict  Church  teaching,  by  615  cate- 
chists.     A  fine  college  (on  an  ample  tract  of  land),  has  been 


THE  CHURCH  IN  MARYLAND.  419 

established,  and  is  in  active  operation  through  Bishop  Whit- 
tiugham's  untiring  efforts  ;  to  whom,  with  the  Standing 
Committee  of  the  diocess,  the  donors  have  made  it  over  in 
trust  as  a  Church  institution.  It  has  already  nearly  fifty 
students  under  seven  professors,  four  of  them  clergymen ! 
There  is  an  incorporated  institute  for  girls,  under  the  bishop's 
visitation,  and  four  others  (Church  schools),  partially  or 
wholly  endowed  ;  and  a  preparatory  school  for  candidates 
for  holy  orders ;  five  parochial  schools,  held  in  school-houses 
erected  for  the  purpose ;  five  female  orphan  asylums,  and  a 
fund  for  the  education  of  poor  children ;  a  diocesan  "  Pray- 
er-Book  and  Homily  Society,"  which  distributes  more  than 
a  thousand  prayer-books,  annually,  besides  a  proportion  of 
the  large  size  for  aged  persons.  Add  to  these  statistics,  that 
the  contributions  of  the  faithful  in  the  diocess,  for  religious 
and  charitable  purposes,  during  the  last  three  years,  has 
been  43,906  dollars ;  and  what  Maryland  Churchman  can 
help  exclaiming,  "  Surely  God  is  good  to  Israel !"  He  has, 
indeed,  visited  the  vine  of  his  own  right  hand's  planting. 


CHAPTER  LX. 


A   MARYLAND    CONVENTION. 


The  Convention  of  the  Church  in  Maryland  was  held 
in  Baltimore,  shortly  after  my  removal  to  that  diocess,  but 
the  engagements  attending  the  removal  of  the  family  to 
Rockville  prevented  my  attendance,  beyond  part  of  a  day, 
on  its  sittings.  I  was  much  gratified  in  witnessing  the 
entire  proceedings  of  this  body,  the  year  following,  just 
before  taking  my  departure  from  the  United  States.  The 
session,  in  both  cases,  lasted  four  days,  several  questions  of 
considerable  interest  having  to  be  settled.  One  of  these 
related  to  the  proposed  admission  of  a  new  congregation, 
out  of  the  ancient  parish  of  St.  John,  Hagerstown.  The 
memorialists  had  withdrawn  from  the  pastoral  care  of  the 
rector*  on  the  ground  of  his  introducing  "  novelties*'  in  the  in- 
ternal construction  of  the  church  edifice,  and  "  innovations  " 
on  the  "  old  mode  "  of  conducting  the  service.  The  "  novel- 
lies  "  consisted  in  restoring  the  chancel  to  the  original 
plan,  as  it  is  seen  in  many  of  our  English  churches,  and  as 
it  was  invariably  arranged  in  American  churches  before  the 
Revolution  ;  and  the  "  innovations "  in  a  compliance  with 
the  bishop's  recommendation  to  lay  aside  the  gown,  and  use 
the  Offertory  every  Sunday  !  The  Convention,  however, 
sustained  Mr.  Lyman,  by  a  vote  of  forty-four  clergy  to 
twenty-one  ;  and  of  laity,  twenty-seven  to  seventeen  ;  and 
on  the  renewal  of  the  application  in  1845,  it  was  rejected 
by  more  than  two-thirds  of  both  orders. 

*  The  Rev.  Theodore  B.  Lyman,  A.M. 


MARYLAND   CONVENTION    OF    1844>  421 

And  yet  the  laity  of  Maryland  understand  their  rights  as 
well  as  the  wiseacres  of  Tottenham  and  Ware  ! 

The  laity  ! — Why,  the  clerical  party  in  the  two  Conven- 
tions I  attended,  expressly  abstained  (at  the  bishop's  sugges- 
tion) from  taking  any  part  in  the  discussion  on  these  rubrical 
points.  The  worn-out  charge  of  "  clerical  infringement  on 
popular  rights  "  having  been  trumped  up  by  the  factionists, 
whose  aim  was,  too  evidently,  to  use  the  uninformed  classes 
amongst  the  people  as  the  instruments  of  their  own  party 
purposes,  the  question  was  left  entirely  in  the  hands  of  lay- 
men ;  and  well  was  the  contest  sustained  by  the  friends 
of  Church  order  !  The  dogmatic  expounders  of  ecclesi- 
astical rule  and  precedent  who  figure  so  learnedly  in  the 
editorial  columns  of  certain  secular  prints  in  the  English 
metropolis,  and  their  blinded  dupes  in  the  refractory  vestries 
of  suburban  parishes,  would  have  been  put  to  the  blush  by 
the  historical  knowledge,  and  the  intimate  acquaintance 
with  the  whole  subject  of  ritual  and  rubrical  law,  displayed 
by  the  intelligent  laics  of  Maryland  on  these  occasions. 
The  triumph  of  principle,  truth,  and  common  sense,  was 
complete  ! — and,  but  for  the  dogged  obstinacy  of  party 
prejudice,  would  have  been  followed  by  an  unanimous 
vote.  But  in  religious  as  well  as  in  secular  disputes,  the 
old  couplet  too  generally  applies  : — 

"  A  man  convinced  against  his  will 
Is  of  the  same  opinion  still." 

It  is  due,  however,  to  the  Church  convocations  of  Ameri- 
ca, to  add,  that  they  are,  with  only  occasional  exceptions, 
conducted  with  great  good  humour,  and  that  but  little  of 
the  acerbity  of  temper,  which  is  engendered  by  party  spirit 
in  the  height  of  debate,  remains  after  the  members  have 
risen  from  their  seats.  The  interchange  of  friendly  offices 
continues,  even  in  the  intervals  during  the  session,  when 


422  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

business  is  suspended  ;  while  the  greetings  on  coming  to- 
gether, and  the  farewells  at  separation  between  opposing 
champions  in  a  vexed  question,  would  lead  an  indifferent 
spectator  to  suppose  that  no  hostility  could  possibly  exist 
between  opponents.  That  much  of  this  appearance  is 
merely  the  result  of  good  breeding,  and  a  deference  to  the 
laws  of  Christian  courtesy,  cannot  be  doubted  ;  yet  the 
very  existence  of  this  aspect  of  harmony  every  where  but 
on  the  floor  of  convention,  is  a  sufficient  argument  (when 
we  look  at  the  many  good  effects  of  the  institution  itself) 
against  the  objections  which  the  Erastian,  in  our  own 
Church,  and  the  timid  of  every  class,  urge  against  the 
revival  of  Convocation.  Circumstances  are,  however,  daily 
proving  the  incompetency  of  the  Church  of  England  to  act 
efficiently  without  her  Convocation,  and  exhibiting  the 
absolute  necessity,  on  many  grounds,  to  convene  it  at  an 
early  day. 

The  conventional  debates  in  the  diocesan,  as  well  as  the 
General  Conventions  in  America,  bring  out  some  of  the  first 
talent  in  the  country.  In  Maryland,  Judges  Magruder  and 
Chambers,  Messrs.  Hugh  D.  Evans,  Alexander,  Coxe,  and 
Schnebly,  are  as  distinguished  at  the  bar,  and  in  the  legis- 
lative assembly,  as  in  the  councils  of  the  Church.  Judge 
Chambers  has  few  equals  in  the  United  States,  for  his 
ability  in  forensic  debate.  His  powers  of  logic  are  well  set 
off  by  a  large  share  of  humour  and  wit,  which  were 
brought  into  play  with  great  effect  on  the  occasion  of  the 
Hagerstown  contest.  Mr.  Evans  is  the  editor  of  the  "  True 
Catholic,"  a  monthly  review,  which  holds  the  same  rank  in 
America  as  the  best  of  our  English  Church  periodicals,  and 
is  surpassed  in  the  brilliancy  of  its  articles  by  none.  He  is 
likewise  a  prominent  member  of  the  bar,  and  an  able 
writer  on  jurisprudence.  Mr.  Schnebly  belongs  to  a  family 
distinguished  for  the  ability  of  its  members.     He  is  editor 


MARYLAND    CONVENTION    OF    18-11.  423 

of  "The  Hagerstown  Pledge,"  and  enjoys  an  extensive 
reputation  as  an  elegant  writer  and  a  popular  lecturer  on 
scientific  subjects.* 

Bishop  Whittingham's  opinion  on  the  subject  of  the  Ha- 
gerstown controversy  may  be  learnt  from  the  following  allu- 
sion to  ritual  matters,  in  the  course  of  his  Address  :  like  every 
thing  from  his  practised  pen,  a  most  masterly  document,  of 
which,  though  the  principal  feature  of  the  conventional  dis- 
cussion on  this  occasion  calls  for  only  this  quotation,  it  was 
the  least  important  in  the  whole  Address  :— 

"  On  Wednesday,  July  26th,  I  had  the  great  pleasure  to 
officiate  in  laying  the  corner-stone  of  St.  Stephen's  church, 
Lee  Street,  in  Baltimore,  using  for  the  purpose  an  office 
prepared  (principally  from  the  form  put  forth  by  the  late 
venerable  Bishop  of  the  Eastern  diocess)  and  published  by 
me  for  use  on  such  occasions  in  this  diocess.  I  delivered  an 
address  to  a  large  and  attentive  assemblage.  It  was  pleasing 
to  observe  how  decidedly  favourable  an  impression  was 
produced  by  these  services,  and  in  particular  by  the  at- 
tendance of  several  of  the  clergy  in  the  proper  ecclesiastical 
garment,  the  surplice. 

"  The  edifice  commenced  on  that  occasion  has  been  since 
happily  completed.  In  it  we  have  a  remarkable  proof  how 
much  can  be  accomplished  by  a  judicious  and  economical 
use  of  very  slender  means.  For  less  than  2500  dollars,  an 
edifice  has  been  provided,  furnishing  every  desirable  ac- 
commodation for  all  the  rites  and  ordinances  of  the  Church. 
If  any  think  its  style  of  arrangement  and  decoration  faulty, 


*  The  brother  of  this  gentleman,  Mr.  William  Schnebly,  has  recently  visited 
England,  where  he  has  succeeded  in  bringing  before  the  public  some  important 
improvements  in  the  steam-engine,  as  applied  to  railway  locomotives;  and  the 
direct  application  of  steam  to  the  periphery.  He  has  also  invented  a  new  print- 
ing-press, constructed  on  an  admirable  plan,  combining  many  advantages  over 
those  now  in  use,  with  greater  simplicity. 


424        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

it  is  for  them  to  consider  the  tendency  of  a  gradual  relin- 
quishment of  old  practices,  usages,  and  ornaments,  to  an 
usurping  body  that  stands  ready  to  claim  them,  and  with 
them  the  style  and  title  of  '  the  Catholic  Church  ;'  of  which 
in  our  creeds  we  profess  to  assert  our  right  of  membership. 
None  of  the  reformed  communions,  except  the  English 
Puritans  and  Scotch  Presbyterians,  have  ever  shrunk  from 
emblazoning  the  cross,  as  distinguished  from  the  crucifix, 
on  buildings  and  furniture  used  for  sacred  purposes.  It  is, 
to  say  the  least,  an  unwise  policy  in  us,  placed  as  we  are 
between  the  Scylla  of  Popery  and  the  Charybdis  of  Dissent, 
to  be  more  squeamish  than  Martin  Luther  and  John  Cal- 
vin. The  same  remark  applies  to  the  arrangement  of  the 
chancel  furniture,  by  which,  in  St.  Stephen's,  the  most  has 
been  made  of  a  little  room,  and  a  degree  of  simplicity  and 
solemnity  attained  which  it  would  be  difficult  otherwise  to 
combine.  If  there  be  a  ground  of  objection  to  the  usage 
of  offering  the  morning  and  evening  prayers  at  the  altar,  it 
is  that  of  an  approach  to  irreverence  and  an  unseemly  en- 
croachment on  the  high  distinction  of  the  Eucharistic 
service.  To  that  I  do  not  think  it  justly  liable ;  while  it 
removes  one  stumbling-block  out  of  the  way  of  our  dis- 
senting brethren,  who  are  accustomed  to  express  dislike  of 
the  change  of  place  necessary  when  the  rubrics  are  duly 
observed  in  a  church  furnished  with  a  reading-pew  and 
pulpit  without  the  chancel  rails.  Within  the  chancel  those 
fixtures  never  were  introduced  until  within  the  last  sixty 
years. 

"  Change  of  garment,  too,  is  an  objection  often  made 
against  our  services  when  the  surplice  is  laid  aside  for  the 
purpose  of  preaching  in  the  gown.  It  may  be  obviated  by 
doing  as  the  reformers  did,  performing  all  sacred  duties  in 
the  one  sacred  garment.  The  fact  is  indisputable  ;  Ghest, 
one  of  the  revisers  of  the  Prayer-book  in  the  reign  of  Eliza- 


MARYLAND    CONVENTION    OF    1844.  425 

beth,  having  argued,  in  his  official  report  on  completing  the 
revision,  in  favour  of  the  use  of  the  surplice  in  the  Commun- 
ion office  from  its  use  m  preaching.     *         * 

"  Thursday,  October  the  6th,  at  the  request  of  the  rector, 
churchwardens,  and  vestry  of  St.  John's,  Hagerstown,  I 
dedicated  that  church  under  circumstances  similar  to  those 
of  St.  John's  in  Georgetown.  Very  great  improvement  has 
been  made  in  the  Church,  and,  in  particular,  the  chancel 
for  spaciousness,  commodiousness,  and  tasteful  arrangement 
of  its  beautiful  communion  table,  pulpit,  and  lecturn,  is,  in 
my  judgment,  among  the  best  I  have  ever  seen.  Let  me 
not  be  misunderstood  in  thus  commending  it.  1  well  know 
of  how  little  moment  matters  of  taste  and  convenience  in 
the  material  edifice  and  its  appurtenances  are,  in  comparison 
with  the  weightier  matters  of  faith  and  holiness.  But 
where  the  latter  are  not  left  unattended  to,  surely  it  is  but 
a  bounden  duty  to  superadd  the  lesser  things  pertaining  to 
adornment,  and  fitness,  and  old  time-honoured  usage !  To 
substitute  punctilious  nicety  in  robings  and  furniture  and 
architectural  properties  for  the  Gospel  in  its  fulness  and  the 
Law  in  its  heart-searching  power,  were  madness  ;  but  the 
Law  is  not  less  stringent,  the  Gospel  not  less  powerful  and 
full  of  comfort,  because  proclaimed  in  a  church  built,  fur- 
nished, and  adorned  according  to  the  strictest  principles  of 
ecclesiastical  taste  and  primitive  antiquity ;  and  why  should 
we  forego  those  advantages,  when  they  may  be  conjoined 
with  such  as  we  already  have  ?  The  folly  and  the  sin  is 
in  rating  them  above  their  due  ;  and  that  is  done  equally 
by  superstitious  dread  as  by  superstitious  regard.  It  is  be- 
cause I  feel  sure  that  there  is  no  tendency  among  us  to 
swear  by  the  gold  of  the  temple  that  I  feel  safe  in  urging, 
on  all  due  occasions,  more  attention  to  the  externals  of  re- 
ligious  worship — to    those   things   which   distinguish   the 


% 

426  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

house  of  God  and  the  service  of  God  from  all  other  places 
and  occasions  of  assemblage." 

One  practice  of  the  Maryland  Conventions  must  not  be 
passed  by.  It  is  worthy  of  imitation  in  every  clerical 
gathering  ;  and  its  good  effect  has,  since  its  introduction  in 
this  instance,  been  visible  in  the  happy  union  of  feeling 
beginning  to  appear  amongst  the  Church  legislators  of  this 
diocess  :  it  is  to  assist  daily  at  the  Holy  Communion,  which 
(rubrically)  forms  a  distinct  mid-day  service.  The  pious 
clergy  of  Maryland,  like  those  of  a  primitive  age,  regard 
the  Holy  Sacrifice,  as  "  an  holocaust  of  perfect  love  ;  pro- 
pitiatory for  sins  past,  expiatory  of  pains  and  punishments 
due  to  them,  impetratory  of  new  gifts  and  graces,  eucharis- 
tical  for  blessings  and  benefits  received." 


CHAPTER  LXI. 

GENERAL    CONVENTION    OF    1844. 

In  October  of  this  year  I  attended  the  General  Conven- 
tion of  the  Church,  which  held  its  meeting  in  Philadelphia. 
At  this  convention  the  aged  Bishop  of  Illinois  presided. 
The  following  tribute  was  paid  by  the  House  of  Bishops  to 
the  memory  of  the  late  senior,  with  whose  name  was  appro- 
priately associated  the  late  Bishop  of  Virginia,  whose  death 
had  occurred  on  November  11th,  1841 ; — 

"  Whereas,  since  our  last  meeting  in  General  Convention 
it  hath  pleased  the  Almighty,  in  his  wise  Providence,  to 
remove  from  their  probation  the  two  senior  members  of  the 
House  of  Bishops — the  Rt.  Rev.  A.  V.  Griswold,  D.  D.,  and 
the  Rt.  Rev.  R.  C.  Moore,  D.  D. ;  and  whereas  it  has  been 
usual,  under  like  dispensations  of  Divine  Providence,  for 
this  House  to  make  a  record  of  its  sentiments  in  relation  to 
them : 

"  Resolved,  That  we  reverently  bow  to  the  will  of  God ; 
that  in  the  lives  and  labours  of  these,  our  departed  brethren, 
we  recognise  the  good  Providence  and  Grace  of  God,  with- 
out whom  no  one  is  holy,  no  one  is  strong ;  and  that  we 
regard  their  example  of  unreserved  and  cheerful  devoted- 
ness  to  their  high  calling,  of  meekness,  humility,  and  charity 
in  word  and  deed,  as  a  valuable  legacy  to  the  Church,  and 
especially  to  the  clergy." 

The  House  of  Clerical  and  Lay  Deputies  unanimously 
passed  the  following  : — 


428  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

"  That  this  House  cannot  adjourn  without  expressing  its 
painful  sense  of  the  loss  which  this  branch  of  the  Church  of 
Christ  has  sustained  in  the  death  of  its  late  presiding  Bishop, 
the  Right  Reverend  Alexander  Viets  Griswold,  D.D.,  Bishop 
of  the  Eastern  Diocess,  whose  humble  piety,  fervent  zeal 
and  Christian  prudence,  during  a  long  life  of  usefulness, 
rendered  him  an  eminent  blessing  to  the  Church,  and  en- 
deared him  to  all  who  were  privileged  to  enjoy  the  benefits 
of  his  ministerial  and  episcopal  labours." 

This  Convention  was  only  surpassed  in  its  interest,  since 
the  American  Church's  first  General  Convention,  by  the 
memorable  meeting  of  1835.  Two  new  canons  were  passed,* 
and  seven  of  the  old  ones  amended.!  The  first  of  the  new 
canons  allowed  the  admission  to  deacon's  orders  of  a  class 
of  persons  without  the  usual  literary  qualifications.  The 
persons  so  admitted  to  be  assistants  to  the  rector  in  whose 
parish  they  resided,  and  ineligible  to  seats  in  the  General  or 
Diocesan  Convention.  A  similar  canon  was  sent  down  by 
the  bishops  to  the  lower  house  in  18-41,  but  was  returned. 
It  was  designed  exclusively  for  the  western  and  southern 
diocesses,  neither  of  whose  bishops  can  avail  themselves  of 
it  without  the  consent  of  their  conventions.  It  was  doubt- 
less a  hastily  concocted  measure  ;  and  would,  if  earned  out, 
more  embarrass  the  bishops  than  forward  the  operations  of 
the  Church  in  those  districts.  I  believe  that  only  one  dio- 
cess has  made  the  canonical  request  to  the  episcopal  head 
to  admit  persons  to  orders  under  this  act. 

The  other  new  canon  was  highly  important ;  it  related 
to  foreign  missionary  bishops.  It  directed  that  "  the  House 
of  Clerical  and  Lay  Deputies  may,  from  time  to  time,  on 
nomination  by  the  House  of  Bishops,  elect  a  suitable  person 

*  See  Appendix,  No.  V. 

t  Viz.  the  II.,  XXIII.,  XXXII.,  XXXV.,  LIV.  of  1832;  the  IV.  of  1841; 
and  the  II.  of  1835.     See  Appendix,  No.  V. 


GENERAL    CONVENTION    OF    1844-  429 

or  persons  to  be  a  bishop  or  bishops  of  this  Church,  to  exer- 
cise episcopal  functions  in  any  missionary  station  or  stations 
of  this  Church,  out  of  the  territory  of  the  United  States, 
which  the  House  of  Bishops,  with  the  concurrence  of  the 
House  of  Clerical  and  Lay  Deputies,  may  have  desig- 
nated."* 

Under  this  canon,  the  bishops  nominated  and  the  depu- 
ties elected  the  Rev.  Horatio  Southgate  as  missionary 
bishop  in  Turkey,  the  Rev.  William  J.  Boone,  as  missionary 
bishop  in  China,  with  the  title  of  "  Bishop  of  Amoy,"t  and 

*  See  Appendix  for  the  remaining  clauses. 

t  Bishop  Boone  sailed  for  his  interesting  field  of  labour  on  the  15th  of  De- 
cember. The  following  account  of  some  parting  services,  &c,  is  taken  from 
the  Philadelphia  "Episcopal  Recorder;" 

"  Farewell  Missionary  Meeting. — This  meeting  was  held  on  Sunday  evening, 
the  8th  December,  in  St.  George's  church,  the  Rt.  Rev.  the  Bishop  of  Virginia 
presiding. 

"  There  were  present  also  the  Bishops  of  Ohio,  Kentucky,  and  Georgia,  the 
Missionary  Bishops  to  China  and  Turkey,  all  the  Missionaries  to  China,  and  a 
large  number  of  the  clergy  of  our  Church,  and  an  overflowing  congregation. 

"  After  prayers  by  the  Bishop  of  Kentucky,  the  Bishop  of  Virginia  stated  the 
object  of  the  meeting,  and  with  affectionate  earnestness  commended  the  cause 
of  Missions  to  all  present. 

"  The  Rev.  P.  P.  Irving,  as  Secretary  and  General  Agent  of  the  Foreign 
Committee,  then  stated  that  he  was  about  to  present  to  the  Mission  the  instruc- 
tions which  they,  as  the  constituted  representatives  of  the  Church,  had  adopted  at 
a  meeting  recently  held,  and  which  were  signed  by  the  Bishop  of  Virginia, 
then  present  and  presiding. 

"The  instructions  were  then  read  to  the  missionaries,  and  were  listened  to 
by  the  audience  with  great  attention.  As  these  instructions  will  doubtless  be 
published  at  length  in  the  '  Recorder,'  your  readers  will  be  able  to  judge  for 
themselves  as  to  their  character. 

"  The  circumstances  under  which  this  mission  is  sent  out,  with  a  chief  pas- 
tor at  its  head,  the  interest  it  has  excited  in  the  Church  throughout  the  country, 
the  importance  of  the  field,  and  the  numbers  to  be  engaged  in  it,  as  well  as  the 
state  of  feeling  and  sentiment  within  our  borders,  were  all,  we  trust,  considered 
by  the  Foreign  Committee  in  the  preparation  of  their  instructions.  After  an 
experience  of  nine  years,  they  have  given  the  Church  a  transcript  of  the  prin- 
ciples and  polity  on  which  its  missions  will  be  conducted,  so  far  as  committed  to 


430        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

the  Rev.  Alexander  Glennie  as  missionary  bishop  in 
Western  Africa  ;  with  suitable  salaries.  The  latter  gentle- 
man declined  the  appointment,  and  the  two  first  were  con- 
secrated in  St.  Peter's  church,  a  few  days  after  the  close  of 
the  Convention. 

The  Rev.  George  W.  Freeman,  D.D.,  was  also  elected  to 
the  south-western  missionary  district  (including  Texas) 
south  of  36|°  parallel  of  latitude,  and  Bishop  Polk's  juris- 
diction  limited   to   the   diocess  of  Louisiana,   which   had 

them  for  the  future,  and  the  voice  of  the  Church  will  decide  whether  to  ap- 
prove or  condemn  them. 

"  The  Missionary  Bishop  to  China  then  addressed  the  meeting  upon  the  re- 
ligious and  social  condition  of  the  Chinese,  and  made  a  most  interesting  and 
powerful  appeal  to  the  Church  to  sustain  and  enlarge  this  promising  mission. 

"  The  Bishop  of  Ohio,  in  a  short  and  forcible  appeal,  urged  on  all  the  mem- 
bers of  Christ's  Church  the  duty  of  consecrating  themselves  to  the  work  of 
spreading  the  Gospel,  though  all  were  not  privileged  to  bear  its  glad  tidings  as 
Christ's  ambassadors.  This  deeply  interesting  and  important  meeting  was 
closed  by  the  benediction  from  the  Bishop  of  Virginia. 

"  Embarkation  of  the  Missionaries. — The  Rt.  Rev.  Dr.  Boone,  Mrs.  Boone 
and  son ;  the  Rev.  Mr.  Woods,  Mrs.  Woods ;  the  Rev.  Mr.  Graham,  Mrs.  Gra- 
ham ;  Miss  Gillett,  Miss  Jones,  and  Miss  Morse,  with  the  Chinese  teacher  and 
attendant,  sailed  from  New  York  in  the  ship  Horatio,  Capt.  Wood,  on  Saturday 
the  15th  December. 

"  They  were  accompanied  by  several  of  the  clergy  and  many  friends  in  the 
ship  to  the  lower  bay.  Before  parting,  all  were  assembled  in  the  cabin  and 
■nited  in  singing  the  beautiful  hymn,  '  Blest  be  the  tie  that  binds,'  after  which 
the  rector  of  St.  George's  offered  appropriate  prayers. 

"  The  Bishop  of  China  briefly  addressed  all  present,  affectionately  exhorting 
them  to  prepare  for  a  future  meeting  in  that  world  where  parting  would  be  un- 
known ;  and  was  followed  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Boyd  [the  catholic-hearted  divine 
and  scholar  of  St.  John's,  Philadelphia,  whose  daughter  is  the  wife  of  one  of 
the  missionaries],  in  words  full  of  comfort  to  friends  about  to  part,  while  he  re- 
cited to  them  the  precious  promises  of  the  word  of  God. 

"  The  Bishop  pronounced  the  benediction,  and  we  then  bade  each  other  fare- 
well ;  and  as  the  vessel  receded  from  us  we  could  see  them  smiling  through 
their  tears,  as  the  favouring  wind  wafted  this  beautiful  missionary  ship  with 
its  precious  burden  toward  its  distant  haven.  May  God's  blessing  go  with 
them  !'J 


GENERAL    CONVENTION    OF    1844.  431 

greatly  increased  in  importance  since  his  appointment  in 
1841.* 

The  number  of  clergymen  in  the  north-western  mission- 
ary territory  (under  Bishop  Kemper)  having  increased  to 
twenty-seven,  Missouri  (in  which  were  now  twelve)  had  by 
her  own  action  become  an  independent  diocess,  and  had 
elected  the  Rev.  Cicero  S.  Hawks  to  the  episcopal  office  ; 
which  separation  and  election  was  confirmed  by  the  General 
Convention,  and  Mr.  Hawks,  with  the  bishops  elect  of  the 
newly-formed  diocesses  of  New  Hampshire  and  Alabama, 
were  consecrated  at  Philadelphia  during  the  conventional 
session. 

The  Convention  refused  to  ratify  the  election  of  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Francis  L.  Hawks,  to  the  newly-formed  diocess  of  Mis- 
sissippi, on  the  ground  of  unsettled  difficulties  between  that 
gentleman  and  the  contractors  of  some  seminary  buildings 
in  Long  Island  (who  opposed  his  election),  and  referred  the 
matter  back  to  the  diocesan  convention  of  Mississippi.  An 
incompetency  to  conduct  business  involving  complicated 
money  transactions  was  evidently  the  sole  foundation  of 
Dr.  Hawks's  difficulties,  and  the  impediment  to  his  long 
looked-for  elevation  to  the  episcopal  bench  communicated 
the  strongest  mortification  and  disappointment  to  his  nu- 
merous friends  !  Whether  with  or  without  the  mitre,  Dr. 
Hawks  is  incomparably  superior  in  fiery  eloquence  and 
general  talents  to  any  other  ecclesiastic  in  the  United 
States. 

The  following  letter  from  Dr.  Jarvis  was  communicated 
to  the  Upper  House  by  Bishop  Kemper  : — 

*  Since  the  previous  Convention  in  1841,  five  new  parishes  had  been  added 
in  Louisiana,  the  number  of  clergy  had  increased  to  eleven,  and  3000  dollars 
had  been  contributed  within  the  diocess  to  benevolent  objects.  "  In  the  city  of 
New  Orleans,"  reported  Bishop  Polk,  "two  or  three  new  parishes  might  be 
immediately  organised,  and  church  edifices  soon  after  erected."  The  bishop's 
residence  is  now  at  Thibodoux,  where  he  owns  a  large  estate. 


432        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

"  Philadelphia,  Oct.  2,  1844. 
"Right  Rev.  Fathers  in  God, 
"  Encouraged  by  your  approbation  of  his  labours  at  the 
last  General  Convention,  your  Historiographer  proceeded  to 
prepare  for  the  press  his  '  Chronological  Introduction  to  the 
History  of  the  Church.' 

"  The  disastrous  condition  of  our  country  at  that  time 
delayed  the  publication,  and  finally  induced  the  author  to 
go  to  England,  that  the  work  might  be  stereotyped  there, 
and  be  published  simultaneously  in  both  countries. 

"  This  measure  has  been  eminently  successful,  and  he  is 
now  enabled  to  lay  before  you  a  proof  copy,  hastily  pre- 
pared the  day  before  he  sailed,  for  your  inspection. 

"If,  after  due  examination,  you,  Right  Reverend  Fathers, 
shall  be  pleased  to  continue  your  approbation,  your  Histori- 
ographer begs  leave  to  express  the  hope  that  a  joint  com- 
mittee of  both  houses  may  be  appointed  to  confer  with  him 
as  to  its  publication,  and  the  future  progress  of  his  Ecclesi- 
astical History. 

"  He  has  the  honour  to  remain, 
Right  Reverend  Fathers, 

Your  faithful  son  and  servant, 
S.  Farmer  Jarvis, 
Historiographer  of  the  Church." 

Dr.  Jarvis's  suggestion  was  promptly  and  unanimously 
acted  upon,  and  Bishops  Whittingham,  Doane,  and  Hop- 
kins, were  appointed  a  committee  on  the  part  of  the  Upper 
Chamber. 

Rumours  having  been  long  rife  touching  the  tendency 
of  the  instructions,  and  the  practices  of  the  students  in 
the  General  Theological  Seminary  (which  was  charged  by 
the  "  low  church"  partisans  with  being  under  "  tractarian" 
influence),  a  formal  investigation  was  made  by  the  bishops 


GENERAL    CONVENTION    OF    1844-  433 

in  reference  to  both  points,  which  resulted  in  a  complete 
vindication  of  the  professors  of  any  departure  from  the 
orthodox  standards  of  the  Church  in  their  teachings,  or  in 
the  selection  of  books  used  in  the  seminary ;  and  the 
"  popish"  practices  of  the  students — the  alleged  "  penances." 
"seven   prayer   hours,"  "severe  vigils,"  "image  worship," 

;-  midnight  masses,"  &c.  &c,  resolved  themselves  into 

a  cross  in  the  chancel  of  the  seminary  chapel,  and  an  early 
morning  service  on  Christmas-day,  "conducted  according 
to  the  use  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  the  Uni- 
ted States  of  America  !" 

The  mountain  was  delivered  of  a  mouse,  and  the  gaping 
spectators  discovered  they  had  been  made  the  dupes  of  a 
miserable  party  intrigue.  Like  Oxford,  the  New  York 
Seminary  has  its  vigilant  friends,  whose  favourite  amuse- 
ment is 

"To  watch  at  Mary's  porch,  and  well  count  out 
Those  bad  young  Sophs  who  dare  to  be  devout." 

It  is  scarcely  worthy  of  record,  in  connexion  with  this 
movement,  that  a  querulous  member  from  Ohio  endeav- 
oured, by  a  "  motion,"  to  draw  the  house  of  deputies  into 
the  Puseyite  controversy ;  but  the  poor  gentleman  utterly 
failed.  His  "  resolution"*  was  negatived,  and  the  house  de- 
cided by  a  vote  of  twenty-Jive  diocesses  to  two, — 

*  "  Whereas  the  minds  of  many  of  the  members  of  this  Church,  throughout 
its  Union,  are  sorely  grieved  and  perplexed  by  the  alleged  introduction  among 
them  of  serious  errors  in  doctrine  and  practice,  having  their  origin  in  certain 
writings  emanating  chiefly  from  members  of  the  University  of  Oxford  in  Eng- 
land ;  and  whereas  it  is  exceedingly  desirable  that  the  minds  of  such  persons 
should  be  calmed,  their  anxieties  allayed,  and  the  Church  disabused  of  the 
charge  of  holding,  in  her  articles  and  offices,  doctrines  and  practices  consistent 
with  all  the  views  and  opinions  expressed  in  said  Oxford  writings,  and  should 
thus  be  freed  from  a  responsibility  which  does  not  properly  belong  to  her; 
therefore, — 

28 


434  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

"  That  the  House  of  Clerical  and  Lay  Deputies  consider 
the  Liturgy,  Offices,  and  Articles  of  the  Church,  sufficient 
exponents  of  her  sense  of  the  essential  doctrines  of  Holy 
Scripture ;  and  that  the  Canons  of  the  Church  afford  ample 
means  of  discipline  and  correction  from  all  who  depart  from 
her  standards. 

"  And  further,  that  the  General  Convention  is  not  a  suit- 
able tribunal  for  the  trial  and  censure  of,  and  that  the 
Church  is  not  responsible  for,  the  errors  of  individuals, 
whether  they  are  members  of  this  Church  or  otherwise." 

With  which  sop  the  "  popery"  bitten  minority  had  to  re- 
turn home  to  their  constituents  ;  and  the  presbyterian  prints, 
which  stood  ready  with  their  paper-artillery  charged  and 
primed,  waiting  for  the  result  of  this  momentous  discussion, 
which  was  to  split  and  divide  the  Church  (like  their  own 
headless  sect),  instantly  discharged  their  fiercest  volleys  of 
editorial  invective  against  the  Convention,  and  the  "  de- 
nomination" it  represented,  which  they  pronounced  "  Pusey- 
ite  to  the  core,"  "popish  in  spirit  as  well  as  practice," 
&c.  &c. 

"  Resolved,  That  the  House  of  Bishops  he  respectfully  requested  to  commu- 
nicate with  this  House  on  this  subject,  and  to  take  such  order  thereon  as  the 
nature  and  magnitude  of  the  evil  alluded  to  may  seem  to  them  to  require." 


CHAPTER  LXII. 

EPISCOPAL    CHANGES. — THE    BISHOP  OF    PENNSYLVANIA'S 
RESIGNATION. THE    BISHOP    OF    NEW    YORKrS    TRIAL. 

At  the  close  of  this  important  Convention,  the  two 
houses,  as  is  customary,  met  to  hear  the  Pastoral  Letter, 
which  was  read  by  Bishop  Chase,  and  in  a  manner  the 
most  impressive  and  dignified.  He  thus  reverted  to  the 
changes  in  the  episcopate  : — 

"Since  our  last  Pastoral  Letter  to  you,  our  Heavenly 
Father  has  seen  fit,  in  his  mysterious  providence,  to  take 
from  us  two  of  our  number, — our  venerable  presiding  brother 
of  the  Eastern  diocess,  and  the  no  less  highly  esteemed 
Bishop  of  Virginia. 

"  Very  worthy  persons  having  succeeded  in  their  respect- 
ive diocesses,  the*  tears  which  their  deaths  occasioned  were 
in  a  measure  dispersed  by  the  hand  of  divine  mercy,  which 
often  strikes  but  to  heal. 

"  The  association  of  states  which  had  composed  the  East- 
ern diocess,  over  which  the  Right  Rev.  Alexander  V.  Gris- 
wold  presided,  has,  by  his  death,  been  dissolved,  and  three 
others  consecrated  to  take  the  pastoral  charge  of  separate 
portions  of  the  same  flock,  viz.  the  Rev.  Doctors  Manton 
Eastburn,  over  Massachusetts  ;  J.  P.  K.  Henshaw,  over 
Rhode  Island  ;  and  Carlton  Chase,  over  New  Hampshire. 

"  Thus  the  spirit  of  heaviness  at  the  loss  of  our  senior 
bishop  has  been  exchanged  for  the  '  garment  of  praise ;'  and 
the  same  may  be  truly  said  of  Virginia.     In  the  place  of 


436  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

mourning  for  good  Bishop  Moore,  the  oil  of  joy  has  bright- 
ened the  face  of  that  beloved  diocess,  and  caused  all  hearts 
to  rejoice  in  the  consecration  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  John  Johns  to 
be  the  assistant-bishop,  and  the  elevation  of  the  Right  Rev. 
William  Meade,  D.D.,  to  be  bishop  of  that  diocess.  Two 
other  bishops  have  been  consecrated  during  this  Conven- 
tion, viz.  the  Rev.  Nicholas  H.  Cobbs,  to  fill  the  episcopate 
of  Alabama,  and  Cicero  S.  Hawks  that  of  Missouri.  Thus 
are  we  comforted  in  announcing  to  you  the  decease  of  our 
beloved  brother-prelates.  As  with  Elijah  and  Elisha  of  old, 
the  mantles  of  those  whom  God  hath  taken  to  himself,  we 
trust,  have  fallen  on  others  whom  He  hath  left  with  us. 

"  The  members  of  our  communion,  in  all  places  of  our 
extensive  country,  have  cause  for  fervent  gratitude  to  the 
Great  Head  of  the  Church  in  Heaven,  that,  by  the  mighty 
power  of  his  Holy  Spirit,  the  present  Convention  of  a  por- 
tion of  his  Church  here  on  earth  hath  been  overruled  for 
good,  and  has  concluded  in  great  peace  ;  especially  in  that 
He  hath  inclined  the  hearts  of  the  members  thereof  to 
elect,  with  great  unanimity,  a  missionary  bishop  for  Ar- 
kansas, and  other  territories  of  the  United  States,  who  is 
likewise  to  exercise  supervision  over  our  missions  in  Texas ; 
and  also  three  brother-bishops  to  spread  abroad  in  foreign 
lands  the  glorious  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord." 

At  the  close  of  the  Pastoral  Letter,  which  was  listened  to 
in  the  deepest  silence,  the  two  houses  united  in  singing  the 
Gloria  in  Excelsis,  and  joining  in  a  prayer  by  the  pre- 
siding bishop,  who  then  lifted  up  his  venerable  hands  and 
pronounced  the  apostolic  benediction. 

The  first  three  named  of  the  additions  to  the  episcopal 
ranks,  mentioned  in  the  Pastoral  Letter,  received  their  con- 
secration on  Sunday,  October  the  20th,  when  the  unusual 
spectacle  was  presented  of  nineteen  bishops,  full  robed, 
around  the  altar  of  that  sacred  edifice ;  an  altar  at  which 


EPISCOPAL    CHANGES.  137 

William  White  had  officiated  during  the  whole  of  his  long 
episcopate.  The  scene  was  invested  with  uncommon  in- 
terest, from  the  reflection  that  the  prelates  there  assembled 
would  in  a  short  time  be  spread  again  over  a  continent, 
engaged  in  their  apostolic  duties,  and  the  three  candidates 
be  themselves  stationed  at  such  opposite  points  of  labour. 

Amongst  the  other  acts  of  the  House  of  Bishops  at  this 
Convention,  was  that  of  ratifying  an  act  of  the  Pennsyl- 
vania Church,  in  accepting  the  resignation  of  its  aged 
bishop.  Ur.  Onderdonk  had  tendered  his  resignation  on 
the  ground  of  ill-health,  which  his  statement  accompany- 
ing the  resignation  shewed  to  have  afflicted  him  from  the 
earliest  date  of  his  episcopate.  The  severe  labours  at- 
tending his  visitation  journeys,  commenced  long  after  he 
had  passed  middle  life,  attended  by  a  total  change  of 
habits,  with  the  accompaniments  of  ague  and  other  epi- 
demic attacks,  common  in  many  parts  of  Pennsylvania, 
required  medical  remedies  incompatible  with  the  nature  of 
his  incessant  duties.  The  case  of  Bishop  Onderdonk,  who 
had  accepted  his  laborious  post  very  reluctantly,  excited 
warm  sympathy  amongst  his  nearest  friends.  Twenty- 
eight  of  the  Convention  refused  to  accept  his  resignation, 
and  proposed  the  election  of  a  suffragan  ;  especially  as  less 
than  half  of  the  clergy  attended  the  Convention  to  which 
the  resignation  was  made.  Bishop  Onderdonk  is  the  au- 
thor of  "  Episcopacy  tested  by  Scripture,"  "  The  Causes  of 
Unbelief,"  "  The  Atonement,"  and  other  tracts,  whose  repu- 
tation, for  the  compass  of  mind  and  strength  of  reasoning 
which  they  discover,  is  as  high  in  Britain  (where  the  first- 
named  treatise  has  had  three  editions)  as  in  the  United 
States.  He  has,  also,  stood  alone  in  advocating  the  ecclesi- 
astical prohibitions  of  unscriptural  marriages ;  which  it  is, 
perhaps,  new  to  the  English  reader  to  learn,  arc  very  com- 
mon in  America,  extending  to  marriages  with  wives'  sis- 


438         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

ters.  Dr.  Onderdonk,  in  an  able  pamphlet  on  this  delicate 
subject,  recommends  the  restoration  of  the  entire  English 
table,  which  was  rejected  by  the  compilers  of  the  American 
Prayer-book.  The  public  opinion,  he  argues,  which  toler- 
ates such  connexions,  will  in  time  sanction  closer  alliances. 
This  question  is  one  which  certainly  belongs  to  the  Church  ; 
and  is  another  of  those  matters  which  were  left  amongst 
the  "  unfinished  business  "  in  the  first  stage  of  her  legisla- 
tion. 

Another  event  of  a  most  painful  character  followed  the 
sitting  of  the  Convention,  which  it  is  the  historian's  duty 
(though  reluctantly  performed)  to  record.  I  shall  do  no 
more.  The  Bishop  of  New  York  was  charged  by  a  clergy- 
man, formerly  of  his  diocess,  with  whom  he  had  had  a 
disagreement,*  with  having  made  improper  advances  to 
four  females — the  affidavits  of  two  (sisters)  being  prepared 
by  him :  and  on  the  accused's  presentment  to  the  presiding 
bishop,  by  the  canonical  number  of  prelates,  he  took  his 
trial  in  NewT  York.  After  a  long  sitting,  amidst  the  greatest 
excitement  without,  the  Court,  on  the  evidence  before  them, 
convicted  the  bishop,  and  passed  a  sentence  of  suspension 
from  the  exercise  of  episcopal  functions.  The  acquitting 
judges,  in  the  persons  of  the  Bishops  of  Western  New  York, 
New  Jersey,  Maryland,  North  Carolina,  Georgia,  and  the 
North  Western  Territory,  entered  on  the  official  journals  of 
the  Court  their  protest  against  the  sentence,  founded  on  the 
trivial  nature  of  the  charges ;  the  character  of  the  wit- 
nesses, as  exhibited  by  their  equivocal  and  conflicting  testi- 
mony ;  their  (admitted)  friendship  and  professed  regard  for 
the  accused  several  years  after  the  alleged  freedoms  ;  his 

*  The  Rev.  James  C.  Richmond,  whom  the  bishop  thwarted  in  a  project  to 
obtain  episcopal  consecration  from  the  British  primates ;  or,  failing  here,  from 
the  Eastern  bishops.  Bishop  Onderdonk  addressed  private  notes  to  Drs.  How- 
ley,  Skinner,  Beresford,  &c,  which  brought  Mr.  Richmond  home. 


THE    BISHOP    QF    NEW    YORK'S    TRIAL.  439 

own  unblemished  character  during  a  long  ministerial  ca- 
reer ;  and,  principally,  the  manner  in  which  the  "evidence" 
was  collected.  The  Bishop  of  Michigan,  the  only  prelate 
who  was  absent  from  the  bench,  has  been,  meanwhile, 
invited  by  the  standing  committee  to  perform  temporary 
duty  in  the  extensive  diocess  of  New  York. 


CHAPTER  LXIII. 

BISHOP    CHASE    AND    JUBILEE    COLLEGE. 

Those  of  my  readers  whose  sympathies  have  been  en- 
listed by  the  history  of  Bishop  Chase's  early  episcopal 
labours  in  Ohio,  narrated  in  a  former  part  of  these  reminis- 
cences, will,  doubtless,  feel  interested  in  a  passing  sketch 
of  his  later  efforts  in  the  same  cause,  in  Illinois  :  the  cause 
of  ministerial  education,  and  youthful  training  in  the  prin- 
ciples of  the  Church. 

On  taking  charge  of  his  new  diocess,  he  lost  no  time  in 
addressing  himself  to  this  important  object.  The  language 
of  his  first  address  to  the  public,  after  entering  on  the  duties 
of  his  see,  exhibits  the  spirit  of  the  man, — 

"  What  doth  the  Lord,  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church, 
require  of  me  ?  and  how  shall  his  glory  be  promoted  by  my 
feeble  efforts?  While,  like  David,  I  have  nothing  save 
the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus,  may  I  not,  like  him,  trust,  in  that 
truth  alone  to  hurl  destruction  in  the  face  of  the  great 
Goliath  of  Gath,  who  now  presents  himself  in  the  valley  of 
the  Mississippi,  defying  the  armies  of  Israel  ?  But  the 
scrip  and  the  sling  are  wanting.  Give  me,  therefore,  but 
an  episcopal  school  in  Illinois,  and  the  great  enemy  whom 
the  pope  and  his  Austrian  allies  have  sent  among  us,  with 
all  his  boasting  blasphemies,  will  fall  to  the  ground  as 
did  Goliath,  and  the  religion  of  the  Son  of  David  shall 
triumph. 

"This   school,  the  Lord   being   my   helper,    shall   be 


BISHOP    CHASE    AND    JUBILEE    COLLEGE.  441 

founded.  It  shall  be  raised  and  shall  stand  ;  that  unto  it 
all  who  are  on  the  Lord's  side  may  flee,  and  in  which  they 
may  prepare  for  battle." 

"  This  question,"  writes  a  western  missionary  priest,  "  thus 
presented,  and  so  solved,  may  be  regarded  as  an  exponent 
of  all  that  followed.  An  institution  of  religion  and  learn- 
ing must  be  had,  and,  wider  God,  one  shoidd  be  had. 
This  full  realization  of  the  responsibility  which  his  appoint- 
ment to  the  episcopate  rolled  upon  him, — and  an  umvavering 
determination,  under  God,  to  discharge  it, — can  alone  throw 
light  upon  the  privations,  sacrifices,  and  toils,  of  the  Bishop 
of  Illinois.  Having  yielded  to  this  responsibility,  he  has 
not  shrunk  from  its  discharge." 

In  1839  the  corner-stone  of  the  chapel  and  school-house 
of  Jubilee  College  (significant  title  !)  was  laid  by  Bishop 
Chase,  being  thirteen  years  from  the  laying  of  Kenyon 
College,  and  Rosse  chapel,  in  Ohio.  "  Its  nature,"  said  the 
bishop,  in  his  address  on  that  occasion,  "is  theological ; 
its  end  is  the  salvation  of  the  souls  of  men  by  means  of  a 
Christian  education.  It  is  to  be  a  school  of  the 
prophets  :  ministers  of  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ  are  to 
be  trained  there.  This  is  its  primary  object,  and  without 
attaining  this,  it  fails  of  its  end  ;  w7hich  end,  therefore,  is 
never  to  be  'merged'  in  any  other.  Persons  of  all  liberal 
professions  in  the  arts  and  sciences  are  also  to  be  educated 
here,  provided  they  be  willing  to  be  taught  the  religion  of 
the  God  of  Christia?is,  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost,  the 
Eloim,  the  Jehovah.  All  things  being  conducted  accord- 
ing to  the  well-known  principles  and  worship  of  the  '  Pro- 
testant Episcopal'  Church  of  the  United  States  of  America, 
the  design  and  will  of  the  donors  and  founders  of  this  insti- 
tution will  be  answered,  and  not  otherwise.'''' 

Without  going  through  the  history  of  Bishop  Chase's  ap- 
peals, journeyings,  and  personal  labours,  to  obtain  an  ample 


412         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

investment  for  his  college,  sufficient  to  put  the  institution  on 
a  solid  and  permanent  foundation,  which  would  fill  a  vol- 
ume, it  is  due  to  the  generous  donors  of  land  to  put  their 
names  on  record  in  this  place.  Of  a  tract  of  4000  acres  of 
excellent  land,  now  belonging  to  Jubilee  College,  3160  were 
selected,  purchased,  and  entered  by  the  bishop,  with  money 
collected  in  the  United  States  and  England  (in,  I  believe, 
about  equal  proportions) ;  320  acres  were  given  by  Messrs. 
Imlay  and  Beach,  of  Hartford,  Connecticut;  160  acres 
by  Mr.  Ebenezer  Rhoads,  of  Boston ;  160  acres  by  Dr. 
M'Knigbt,  of  Washington ;  80  acres  by  Mr.  John  Kinzie, 
of  Chicago. 

The  bishop  wisely  obtained  a  security  against  the  diver- 
sion of  the  college  property  to  uses  foreign  to  the  intention 
of  the  donors  and  his  own,  as  well  as  against  all  the  other 
evils  which  had  followed  his  previous  foundation  of  Ken- 
yon,  both  in  his  manner  of  settling  the  property,  and  in  the 
laws  for  the  internal  government  of  the  schools.  Knowing 
that  the  holders  of  fiduciary  trusts  are  invariably  more  alive 
to  a  sense  of  their  obligations  than  trustees  under  charters 
obtained  from  the  state  legislature,  from  the  greater  facil- 
ity of  reaching  them  when  their  trust  is  violated,  he  con- 
fined himself  to  a  simple  deed  of  trust,  setting  forth  the 
conditions  in  his  address,  on  laying  the  corner-stone  of  Ju- 
bilee College  ;  "  which  becomes,"  writes  one  of  his  advisers, 
"  ipso  facto  the  deed  in  virtue  of  which  the  Church  is 
made  the  owner  of  the  property  for  the  uses  and  purposes 
therein  set  forth  ;  and,  in  the  event  of  his  death,  it  will  be- 
come dejure  the  deed  of  trust,  and  as  such  may  be  proved 
in  any  court  having  jurisdiction  in  such  cases.  The  diver- 
sion or  alienation  of  the  property  to  any  other  than  the  pur- 
poses therein  avowed,  cannot  occur  in  any  supposable  con- 
tingency.   Every  measure  has  been  taken  by  Bishop  Chase 


DISSENTING    TOLERATION.  443 

to  preserve  inviolate,  and  carry  into  effect,  the  wills  of  the 
donors  and  the  intention  of  the  founder." 

This  writer,  however,  thus  qualifies  this  assertion  in  an- 
other reference  to  the  same  subject, — "  So  long  as  faith  pre- 
vails in  the  Church,  or  law  reigns  in  the  land." 

Another  most  important  reason  for  preferring  the  deed  of 
trust  to  a  charter  is  found  in  the  rule  of  the  legislature  of 
Illinois,  to  grant  no  charters  for  institutions  of  learning  with- 
out a  prohibitory  clause,  that  "  nothing  sectarian  should  be 
taught  !"  Thus  in  the  charters  of  Illinois  College,  and  four 
others,  it  is  provided,  that  "  nothing  herein  contained  shall 
authorise  the  establishment  of  a  theological  department  in 
said  college."  In  the  charter  of  Shilo  College,  in  the  same 
state,  a  provision  is  inserted,  that  "the  said  institution  shall 
be  open  to  all  religious  denominations,  and  the  profession 
of  no  particular  religious  faith  shall  be  required  of  either 
officers  or  pupils"  (! !) ;  while  in  that  of  Chatham  college,  in 
the  same  state  (a  manual  labour  school),  the  anti-"  secta- 
rian" legislature,  wishing  to  carry  out  the  "  voluntary"'  prin- 
ciple to  its  fullest  extent,  require  that  "  no  religious  doctrine 
peculiar  to  any  one  sect  of  Christians  shall  be  inculcated 
by  any  professor  in  said  school ;  but  said  institution  shall  at 
all  times  be  conducted  upon  free,  liberal,  and  enlightened 
principles." 

"  Free,  liberal,  and  enlightened,"  with  a  vengeance  !  The 
legislators  of  Illinois  ought  to  know  that  the  Church  Epis- 
copal is  no  "sect;"  and  she  claims  exemption  from  these 
provisions  on  the  twofold  ground — first,  of  having  never 
called  herself  a  "sect,"  which,  in  all  the  formularies,  laws 
and  standards  of  the  Church,  is  repeatedly  disclaimed ; 
secondly,  and  principally,  as  being,  from  the  character  of 
those  laws  and  formularies,  as  well  as  in  her  essential  doc- 
trines, incompetent  to  coalesce  with  the  sects. 

This  rule  of  the  legislature  of  Illinois  affords  to  the  En- 


444  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

glish  Churchman  an  example  of  the  kind  of  toleration  we, 
in  Britain,  may  expect  from  a  "  liberal"  legislative  body,  in 
which  dissenting  influence  has  any  preponderance  of  influ- 
ence. I  point  the  attention  of  my  countrymen  to  it — espe- 
cially of  those  baptized  members  of  England's  Catholic 
Church,  who.  unmindful  of  her  rights  and  their  own  re- 
sponsibilities as  her  children,  would  undermine  her  bulwarks 
(not  her  original  foundation,  that  "  standeth  sure,")  by  neg- 
lecting her  provisions  at  a  time  when  their  observance  is 
necessary  for  her  very  existence  as  a  national  institution ; 
of  those  who  scruple  not  to  join  the  rabid  pack  which  raise 
the  cry  of  "  popery,"  "  Puseyism,"  and  "  innovation,"  at  all 
who  minister  at  her  altars  conformably  with  those  provis- 
ions. The  legislature  of  Illinois,  in  thus  prescribing  reli- 
gious opinion,  "seems,"  in  the  words  of  a  citizen  of  that 
state,  "  to  have  been  guided  by  a  rule,  which  not  only  ren- 
ders them  guiltless  of  protecting  any  religious  institution,  as 
such,  but  even  innocent  of  toleration." 

After  nine  years'  occupancy  of  his  see,  we  find  Bishop 
Chase  more  than  fulfilling  the  expectations,  and  meriting  in 
a  still  higher  degree  the  tribute  of  Bishop  Doane,  on  the 
occasion  of  his  resuming  his  seat  in  the  House  of  Bishops 
in  1835, — "  A  veteran  soldier,  a  bishop  of  the  cross,  whom 
hardships  never  have  discouraged,  whom  no  difficulties  seem 
to  daunt ;  he  [had]  entered  upon  his  new  campaign  with  all 
the  chivalry  of  thirty-five."  The  Herculean  labours  of 
these  nine  years  had,  however,  made  serious  inroads  on  the 
physical  powers  of  the  bishop.  Wearisome  travels  over  the 
wide  territory  of  the  United  States,  and  another  voyage  to 
England  in  the  prosecution  of  his  object,  added  to  constant 
personal  superintendence  of  the  works  when  at  home, 
showed  their  effects  on  his  frame,  on  the  occasion  of  his 
visit  to  Philadelphia,  to  preside  as  senior  prelate  at  the  great 
council  of  the  Church,  the  duties  of  which  office  were  no 


BISHOP    CHASE    AND    JUBILEE    COLLEGE.  445 

sooner  closed  than  he  again  addressed  himself  to  the  great 
object  of  his  closing  life.  Never  shall  I  forget  the  affecting 
character  of  his  appeals  on  this  occasion  :  gathering  up  his 
strength,  as  it  seemed,  for  a  final  effort  to  secure,  if  possible, 
the  consummation  of  his  darling  object  before  his  departure 
from  the  world.  On  one  of  these  occasions  I  assisted  in 
the  altar  service  at  my  friend  Quinan's  church  (the  Evan- 
gelists), and  accompanied  the  bishop  to  his  host's  residence 
after  the  service.  The  feebleness  of  limb  which  made  his 
journey  from  the  carriage  to  the  vestry  a  painful  process, 
and  required  our  united  support  to  enable  him  to  mount  a 
very  steep  staircase,  did  not  prevent  him  from  employing  a 
whole  hour  in  an  appeal  to  the  congregation  on  behalf  of 
Jubilee.  His  public  addresses  on  the  occasion  of  this  visit 
were  nearly  all  of  the  same  character.  After  giving  a 
sketch  of  his  labours  and  their  results*  he  adopted  the  fol- 
lowing mode  of  appeal : — 

*  The  following  shews  how  the  estate  stood  at  the  time  of  this  appeal  of  the 
bishop's. 

The  sums  of  money  received  by  Bishop  Chase  from  England  and  America 
amount  in  the  gross  to  37,530  dollars.  The  lands  in  fee-simple  owned  by  the 
college  comprises  a  little  within  4000  acres,  well  proportioned  in  reference  to 
timber  and  pasture.  About  500  acres  are  well  fenced,  and  150  under  cultiva- 
tion, from  which  the  college  already  receives  a  considerable  portion  of  what  it 
consumes  upon  its  table. 

The  domain  around  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  college  site  is  "unsurpassed 
both  for  beauty  and  salubrity,  agreeably  diversified,  and  well  supplied  with  the 
purest  water.  There  are  also  inexhaustible  beds  of  bituminous  coal,  of  the 
finest  quality,  within  a  distance  of  one-fourth  of  a  mile,  from  which  the  college 
receives  its  daily  supply  of  fuel." 

The  buildings  arc  the  Chapel  and  School  House,  of  stone,  entirely  completed, 
having,  exclusive  of  the  chapel,  two  school-rooms,  witli  dormitories  above. 
This  building  constitutes,  in  part,  the  south  front  of  the  contemplated  quad- 
rangle. The  west  wing,  also  of  stone,  27  by  83,  is  entirely  closed  in,  and  the 
joiners  are  now  engaged  in  laying  the  floor  and  finishing  the  inside.  The  Col- 
lege Hall,  two  stories  exclusive  of  the  attic;  entirely  finished.  The  lower 
story  is  occupied  for  culinary  purposes  ;  the  remainder  for  dormitories.     Jubi- 


446        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

"  I  am  required — it  seems  I  am  expected— to  spread  the 
Gospel,  through  the  blessing  of  God  on  the  ministry  of  our 
Apostolic  Church,  in  the  diocess  of  Illinois,  which  is  larger 
than  all  England,  without  the  clergy  necessary  to  such  an 
end  !  And  whence,  dear  hearers,  can  these  be  obtained  ? 
We  cannot  get  them  from  the  Atlantic  states.     All  you 

Ice  Cottage,  main  building  three  stories  high.  This  building  is,  and  will  con- 
tinue to  be,  occupied  by  the  female  department,  until  the  west  wing  of  the 
quadrangle  is  completed.  A  Professor's  House,  entirely  finished.  This  was  the 
first  building  erected  on  the  hill,  and  at  a  time  when  labour  and  all  materials 
commanded  the  highest  price.  A  Brick  Dwelling  for  students  in  divinity,  com- 
pletely furnished,  containing  four  rooms.  A  Warehouse,  two  stories  high,  16 
by  28,  entirely  finished.  (The  goods  in  store  here  are  sold  at  a  reasonable  profit 
for  the  sole  benefit  of  the  college.  A  Saw-Mill,  with  thirty  acres  of  land  at- 
tached; cost  originally  1600  dollars;  but  failing  to  furnish  lumber  in  sufficient 
quantity  to  meet  the  wants  of  the  college,  was  repaired  at  an  expense  of  800 
dollars.  "  The  repairs,"  says  the  Report,  "  were  of  a  permanent  character, 
consisting  of  Parker's  patent  wheel,  of  massive  cast-iron,  weighing'  upward  of 
26  cwt,  and  heavy  and  durable  timbers.  But  with  all  the  additional  expenses, 
the  saw-mill  brings  in  more  than  the  interest  of  the  money  it  cost,  and  will 
eventually  pay  for  itself."  A  Barn,  36  by  24,  having  stables  in  the  basement, 
and  a  granary  and  scaffolds  for  hay  above.  Also  an  additional  one,  20  by  24, 
containing  carriage-house,  stables,  &c,  in  course  of  erection. 

In  addition  to  the  foregoing  improvements,  the  college  owns, — of  live  stock, 
four  horses,  constantly  engaged  in  the  service  of  the  college;  eight  cows  and 
some  smaller  stock  ;  a  flock  of  about  six  hundred  and  fifty  sheep,  the  wool  of 
which  is  sent  to  the  east,  manufactured  on  shares,  and  sold  for  the  benefit  of 
the  college. 

"  The  farming  interest  as  yet,"  says  the  Report,  "from  the  limited  scale  on 
which  it  has  been  necessarily  conducted,  has  been  attended  with  but  little  profit. 
The  common  labourers  and  teams  have  been  employed  upon  the  farm  only  when 
not  needed  in  preparing  and  hauling  materials  for  building;  but  when  it  can 
be  made  a  more  direct  branch  of  business,  a  larger  amount  of  lands  brought 
into  cultivation,  and  the  stock  increased,  it  cannot  fail  to  bring  in  large  re- 
turns." 

The  library  of  the  college  (constantly  augmenting)  now  makes  near  two 
thousand  volumes,  and  the  bishop's  generous  friends  in  England  have  presented 
to  the  chapel  a  superb  set  of  communion  plate,  including  one  flagon,  two  pa- 
tens, and  two  chalices,  valued  at  seventy  pounds  ;  with  mounted  maps,  charts, 
&c,  ancient  and  modern. 


BISHOP    CHASE    AND    JUBILEE    COLLEGE.  447 

here  educate  are  engaged  before  they  cross  the  mountains. 
Hence  results  the  necessity  of  training  up  our  clergy  in  the 
West.  Sons  of  the  soil"  exclaimed  the  speaker,  with  ener- 
gy,— M  sons  of  the  soil  must  cultivate  the  wide-spreading 
fields  in  the  West.  Grounded  in  this  truth,  Kenyon  College 
was  built  in  years  that  are  past  and  gone,  and  now,  Jubilee 
College,  five  hundred  miles  further  westward,  is  rising  on 
the  same  basis  of  undeniable  truth :  the  necessity  of  educa- 
ting in  the  West,  Western  labourers.  But  whence  are  to 
be  obtained  pupils  devoted  to  the  priesthood  1  The  rich, 
who  only  are  enabled  to  pay,  will  not  send  their  children 
for  that  purpose.  We  turn  then  to  those  who  are  less 
wealthy.  But  here,  alas  !  we  find  few  who  are  able  to  pay 
the  stipend,  small  as  it  is,  for  their  sons'  expenses  at  college. 
Not  one  out  of  many  whom  we  could  obtain,  can  pay  a 
hundred  dollars  per  annum.  This  accounts  for  the  paucity 
of  our  members.  We  have,  indeed,  six  candidates  for  holy 
orders  ;  but  the  number  of  classical  students  is  altogether 
too  small  to  supply  the  wants  of  the  diocess. 

"  We  must,  then,  have  scholarships  established  in  Jubilee 
College  corresponding  to  the  vast  demand,  or  it  is  more  than 
idle  to  boast  of  success.  We  are  not  now  in  '  the  full  tide 
of  successful  experiment.'  'Tis  true  we  have  a  college  out 
of  debt  (kept  so  by  a  long  course  of  self-denial),  but  the 
fact  of  its  being  so  adds  pain  to  the  pang,  that,  through 
the  want  of  liberality  and  a  sense  of  justice  in  our  Church 
people,  so  little  good  comes  of  all  our  pains.  Thus  op- 
pressed, I  feel  as  the  children  of  Israel  felt  when  '  they  were 
required  to  make  bricks  without  straw.'  I  feel  as  my  hired 
servants  would  feel  were  I  to  send  them  into  the  field  with- 
out implements  of  husbandry  wherewithal  to  plough  the 
stubborn  ground,  to  scatter  the  choice  seed,  or  gather  the 
golden  harvest,  and  yet  demand  of  them  that  my  barns  be 


448        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

filled  with  grain  !     In  such  a  case  I  ought  to  take  shame  to 
myself,  instead  of  blaming  them. 

"  Be  assured,  Christian  friends,  that  Illinois  resembles— 
too  nearly  resembles — a  baronial  manor  endowed  by  the 
God  of  nature  with  the  richest  soil,  yet  ruined  for  want  of 
labourers  to  till  it.  The  weeds  of  spiritual  blindness  and 
vice  are  at  this  moment  every  where  growing  and  increas- 
ing. The  trees  of  God's  planting  are  not  watered.  The 
tender  flowers  of  our  vast  prairies,  full  of  Christian  fra- 
grance, are  seen,  for  want  of  timely  care,  every  where  to 
wither  and  die. 

"  And  is  it  always  to  be  so  ?  Is  there  no  end  to  this  long 
road  of  stumbling  by  reason  of  the  darkness  of  despair? 
When,  oh,  when  will  it  be  morning  to  the  aged,  weary 
labourer  in  the  field  of  Christ,  now  soliciting  your  kind  at- 
tentions ?  Are  the  sects  and  parties,  ever  embittered  against 
each  other,  as  they  all  are  and  always  are  against  the  Church, 
for  ever  to  trample  under  foot  every  tender  blade  trans- 
planted from  the  East?  Is  there  never  to  be  a  struggle 
made  to  seek  the  lost  sheep  ? — not  '  one]  for  instance,  of 
the  ten  thousand  lambs  whom  deceitful  men  have  decoyed 
from  the  English  fold  into  the  fangs  of  the  wolves  of  Nau- 
voo?  Are  the  disciples  of  Joe  Smith,  now  enraged  by  his 
murder  ;  are  the  Romanists,  always  dangerous  to  the  state, 
because  they  owe  their  allegiance  to  a  foreign  prince  ;  are 
these  jarring  extremes,  error  and  schism,  to  take  eternal 
possession  of  the  prairies  of  Illinois?  and  is  the  primitive 
Church  of  Christ  destined,  by  your  neglect,  to  possess  there- 
on no  dwelling-place  ? — and  all  for  the  want  of  a  few  scholar- 
ships given  to  an  institution  of  acknowledged  merit ;  now 
ready  to  teach  all  who  are  sent  to  her  care  on  terms  of  un- 
exampled cheapness? 

"  Bear  with  me,  I  beseech  you,  a  little  further.     There  is 
another  view,  which  should  never  be  taken  but  in  extreme 


RISHOP    CHASE    AND    JUBILEE    COLLEGE.  449 

cases,  when  the  glory  of  God  and  the  success  of  his  cause 
require  it,  and  that  is,  to  mention  what  one's  self  has  done, 
by  way  of  inciting  others  to  good  deeds.  Do  I  wish  to 
dwell  at  ease  when  exhorting  others  to  work  1  Do  I  enrich 
myself  and  family  while  I  make  you  poor  by  demanding 
your  assistance  ?  Let  the  answer  to  these  questions  be 
read  in  the  history  of  my  whole  life.  Look  at  the  congre- 
gations which  were  founded  by  my  unworthy  hand  in  the 
western  parts  of  New  York,  in  the  city  of  New  Orleans,  in 
Ohio,  and  in  Illinois  !  Who,  in  these  various  places,  will 
tell  you  that  I  sought  '  the  fleece  and  not  the  flock?'  Have 
I  ever  received  anything  as  a  salary  since  a  bishop,  from 
either  or  both  of  my  diocesses,  of  sufficient  value  in  all  to 
maintain  my  family  for  one  or  even  a  half  of  a  year  ?  With 
regard  to  both  I  can  truly  say,  as  did  Samuel  to  all  Israel, 
'Behold  here  I  am;  witness  against  me  before  the  Lord. 
Whose  ox  have  I  taken  ?  whom  have  I  defrauded  ?  or  of 
whose  hand  have  I  received  a  bribe  to  blind  mine  eyes 
therewith?'  And  with  the  Apostle  I  can  say,  'These 
hands  have  ministered  to  my  necessities.'  But  the  time 
has  come  when  I  can  do  so  no  longer.  Nearly  threescore 
years  and  ten — spent  nearly  all  in  the  service  of  the  Church, 
planting  her  banners  in  those  places  where  few  else  would 
go — have  now  '  brought  down  my  strength  in  the  journey' 
of  life.  The  knees  which  were  once  strong  are  now  feeble, 
and  the  hands  which  once  directed  and  sustained  others 
need  to  be  held  up  by  benevolent  friends. 

"  I  come  before  you,  then,  with  the  permission  of  your 
worthy  pastor,  as  a  pleader  for  your  countrymen  in  the 
west.  The  relation  I  have  long  borne  to  it — I  say  it  with- 
out egotism —  as  its  father  and  friend,  emboldens  me,  not 
to  '  ask  an  alms,'  but  to  stir  up  your  minds,  my  brethren,  by 
way  of  remembrance,  to  pay  a  debt  long  since  due.  I  ask 
eighty-six  scholarships  for  Jubilee  College,  having  obtained 

29 


450  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

fourteen  already  in  coming  here.  I  ask  other  sums,  small 
and  great,  to  enable  me  to  complete  the  work  which  God 
has  given  me  to  do  before  I  die." 

This  and  similar  appeals  were  promptly  responded  to  by 
the  Church's  friends  in  Philadelphia.  One  thousand  six 
hundred  and  sixty-six  dollars,  the  sum  necessary  for  a  pro- 
fessorship, were  subscribed  before  Bishop  Chase  left  the 
city  ;  one-sixth  being  the  contribution  of  a  lady.*  At  the 
conclusion  of  the  above  address,  numbers  of  the  congrega- 
tion pressed  forward  to  the  altar  with  their  gifts  ;  and  the 
hand  of  the  "  aged,  weary  labourer,"  who  then  took  his 
place  near  the  chancel-rails  to  receive  the  greetings  of  his 
friends,  was  pressed  by  many,  who  felt  too  truly  while 
offering  up  the  silent  prayer  for  many  more  days  to  their 
most  loved,  as  well  as  "  most  reverend,"  father,  that,  in  all 
human  probability,  they  should  "  see  his  face  no  more  "  in 
the  flesh. 

As  the  fact,  now  fully  proved  in  the  past  half-century's 
history,  is  undeniable,  that  the  voluntary  contributions  of 
the  friends  of  religion,  in  a  Church-endowed  and  tithe-pay- 
ing country,  are  on  a  far  larger  scale  (even  admitting  the 
disproportion  of  means)  than  in  one  in  which  voluntaryism 
is  established  by  law,  it  may,  perhaps,  assist  in  forwarding 
this  last  great  effort  of  the  American  bishop  to  remind 
many  liberal  souls  who  have  not  yet  contributed  towards 
the  cause  of  ministerial  education  in  the  west,  that  "  the 
past  conduct  of  Bishop  Chase  (to  adopt  the  words  of  one 
of  his  presbyters)  inspires  future  confidence  that,  whatever 
funds  may  be  entrusted  to  him  for  the  completion  of  Jubi- 
lee College,  will  be  judiciously  and  economically  expended 
in  furtherance  of  the  object."  It  is  one  not  undeserving  the 
notice  of  English  Christians,  from  the  multitude  of  emi- 
grants who  annually  leave  our  shores  for  the  western  terri- 
*  Mrs.  Kohne,  a  liberal  benefactress  to  the  Church. 


TRIBUTE    TO    BISHOP    CHASE.  451 

tory  of  America  ;  to  say  nothing  of  those  who  drop  down 
from  Canada  into  the  United  States. 

The  same  writer  adds  : — "  Long  acquaintance  with  Bishop 
Chase,  an  intimate  knowledge  of  his  plans,  while  they 
enable  him  to  speak,  entitle  him  to  a  hearing.  For  twenty 
years  he  has  known  him  in  his  seasons  of  adversity  as 
well  as  prosperity ;  he  has  been  with  him  when  his  most 
cherished  expectations  have  been  blasted — his  fondest  hopes 
crushed :  and  yet  in  all  this  the  writer  has  seen  no  faltering 
— no  distrust.  '  Jehovah-jireh '  has  been  his  watchword, 
and  it  has  been  embodied  forth  in  renewed  exertions  and 
greater  efforts.  Recognizing  and  owning  the  obligations 
which  his  station  in  the  Church  imposed  upon  him,  he  has 
not  failed  to  discharge  them,  whether  they  procured  for 
him  '  good  or  evil  report.'  The  servant  of  the  Church,  he 
has  regarded  not  his  own  but  her  welfare.  A  steward  in 
the  household  of  Christ,  he  has  counted  nothing  as  his 
own,  but  used  it  as  a  talent  for  which  he  must  render  an 
account.  Without  any  salary  or  stated  income  from  any 
source  whatever,  Bishop  Chase  has  laboured  with  his  own 
hands  for  the  support  of  himself  and  family.  During  the 
year  ending  June,  1843,  he  received  from  his  diocess  the 
sum  of  one  hundred  and  seventy-nine  dollars,  scarce  the 
fourth  part  of  his  travelling  expenses  for  the  same  time. 
Instead  of  realizing  anything  from  his  landed  property,  it  is 
a  source  of  expense  to  him.  All  of  his  available  means 
have  been  consumed  in  his  current  expenses.  But  these 
sacrifices  and  privations  have  been  and  still  are  endured  by 
himself  and  his  family  with  patience  and  resignation, 
while  they  in  any  way  enable  him  to  build  up  the  college. 
Of  these  sacrifices  and  privations  the  writer  might  enu- 
merate many  instances  ;  but  though  related  with  all  fidelity, 
they  could  be  scarcely  appreciated  unless  actually  beheld. 
From  first  to  last  the  founding  and  rearing  up  of  Jubilee 


452        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES, 

College  has  been  but  one  scene  of  unremitting  labour  and 
self-denial  to  Bishop  Chase  and  his  pious  and  devoted 
family.  Will  not  the  Church,  then,  again  respond  to  the 
call  of  the  diocess  of  Illinois,  made  through  her  bishop? 
He  seems  in  an  especial  manner,  in  the  providence  of  God, 
to  have  been  singled  out  as  one  through  whom  the  Church 
of  the  blessed  Saviour  both  makes  the  call  and  gives  the 
response.  Since,  then,  in  the  common  course  of  events,  he 
may  not  hereafter  often  repeat  this  call,"  will  not  the 
members  of  the  Church  of  England  deem  it  at  once  a  duty 
and  a  privilege  to  assist  in  fulfilling  this  scheme  of  Provi- 
dence for  the  rapidly  augmenting  population  of  the  western 
prairies?  What  English  heart  does  not  fervently  respond 
to  the  deeply-breathed  aspiration  of  this  writer,  "  that 
Bishop  Chase,  ere  he  die,  may  see  the  completion 
of  Jubilee  College  ?" 


CHAPTER  LXIV. 

CONSECRATION    OF    THE    FOREIGN    BISHOPS. BISHOP 

SOUTHGATE    AND    THE    SYRIAN    CHURCH. 

On  the  following  Friday,  (Oct.  25th,)  the  missionary- 
bishops  elect  for  Texas,  Turkey,  and  China,  received  con- 
secration from  the  presiding  bishop,  assisted  by  eight  other 
prelates,  in  St.  Peter's  church,  of  the  same  city.  I  was 
fortunate  enough  to  get  a  seat  near  the  chancel,  which 
gave  me  a  good  view  of  this  deeply  interesting,  never-to-be- 
forgotten  ceremony.  The  sermon  was  preached  by  the 
Bishop  of  Georgia,  founded  on  the  text,  "  Enlarge  the  place 
of  thy  tent,  and  let  them  stretch  forth  the  curtains  of  thine 
habitations  :  spare  not,  lengthen  thy  cords,  and  strengthen 
thy  stakes ;  for  thou  shalt  break  forth  on  the  right  hand 
and  on  the  left ;  and  thy  seed  shall  inherit  the  Gentiles,  and 
make  the  desolate  cities  to  be  inhabited."*  It  was  a  mas- 
terly production,  and  correctly  described  by  a  literary  critic, 
himself  a  finished  pulpit  orator, t  as  "  one  of  the  most  beau- 
tiful and  scholar-like  performances  heard  for  many  a  long 
day."  In  the  course  of  his  sermon  the  bishop  made  the 
following  allusion  to  England,  and  the  call  for  joint  action 
on  the  part  of  the  English  and  American  Churches  : — 

"  Since  our  existence  as  a  Church,  we  have  been  per- 
mitted to  witness  no  such  exhibition  of  faith  as  that  which 
now  engages  our  attention.     And  if  faith  be  the  principle 

*  Isaiah  liv.  2,  3. 

t  The  Rev.  William  Suddards,  editor  of  the  "Episcopal  Recorder." 


454        ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

of  the  Church's  growth,  and  the  measure  of  the  Church's 
strength,  then  will  this  day  ever  constitute  an  epoch  in  the 
Church's  history.  What  England,  in  the  fulness  of  her 
power,  in  the  immensity  of  her  resources,  in  the  depth  of 
her  piety,  has  just  begun  to  do  for  her  own  children,  we  are 
bold  to  imitate,  not  for  our  own  children,  but  for  the  chil- 
dren of  our  Heavenly  Father,  of  whatever  blood  and  what- 
ever lineage  !  Catching  from  her  the  noble  spirit  that  has 
marked  her  recent  efforts,  or  rather,  I  should  say,  drinking 
with  her  at  the  same  fountain  of  divine  inspiration,  we 
have  hastened  to  obey  the  injunction  of  our  Lord  and  the 
practice  of  the  apostles,  and  send  forth  men,  full,  as  we 
trust,  of  faith  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  confiding  to  them  all 
the  powers  which  our  Lord  has  confided  to  us,  that  they 
may  lack  nothing  which  we  can  confer  upon  them  of  au- 
thority, or  grace,  or  blessing.  We  lay  our  hands  upon 
them,  and  separate  them  for  the  work  whereunto  the  Holy 
Ghost  has  called  them,  in  full  confidence  that  Christ  will 
sustain  us  in  our  efforts  and  bless  them  in  their  labours — 
that  he  will  furnish  his  Church  with  an  abundance  of 
treasure  out  of  the  self-denial  of  his  faithful  people,  and 
fulfil  to  the  ministry  of  his  word  his  gracious  promise  of 
being  with  them  always  to  the  end  of  the  world!  Had 
Reason,  with  her  cold,  calculating  spirit,  been  permitted  to 
shape  our  counsels — Reason,  which  narrows  everything  to 
the  sphere  of  sense  and  sight — we  might  have  hesitated 
about  the  mighty  labours  to  which  we  have  pledged  the 
Church  ;  but  Faith  was  our  instrument  of  vision— Faith, 
which  keeps  before  her  eye  one  single  object,  the  command 
of  her  divine  Lord,  and  in  obeying  that,  embraces  things 
not  seen,  and  realizes  the  visions  of  hope.  Under  her 
guidance  we  commission  these,  our  brethren,  to  take  pos- 
session of  the  kingdoms  of  this  world,  assured  that  they 
will  one  day  become  the  kingdoms  of  Christ.     We  send 


BISHOP    ELLIOTT.  455 

them  forth,  armed  only  with  the  Cross  of  Christ  and  the 
foolishness  of  preaching,  satisfied  that  they  will  vanquish 
the  philosophy  and  subdue  the  feelings  of  man.  We  look 
not  at  the  human  strength  which  is  behind  us  ;  we  reckon 
not  the  hosts,  nor  the  might,  nor  the  associations  that  are 
before  us.  Our  power  depends  not  on  the  one,  nor  is  our 
courage  daunted  by  the  other.  Our  trust  is  in  the  arm  of 
the  Lord,  and  we  see  as  the  prophet's  servant  did  when  his 
eyes  were  opened — not  chariots  and  horses  of  fire — but 
what  is  mightier  than  all  chariots  and  all  horses,  the  fire  of 
the  Holy  Ghost,  ready  to  go  forth  with  the  ministers  of  the 
Lord  and  with  the  truth  of  his  Christ." 

"Nor  can  I  think  that  we  have  entered  rashly  into  a  po- 
sition which  might  have  been  more  advantageously  occu- 
pied by  another  branch  of  the  Church  of  Christ.  It  seems 
as  if  God,  in  his  wise  providence,  has  cast  upon  England 
and  these  United  States  the  conversion  of  the  world.  None 
other  of  the  civilized  nations  of  the  earth  are  in  a  condition 
to  take  any  larger  part  in  this  glorious  enterprise.  Some 
are  hindered  by  position,  having  but  little  maritime  con- 
nexion with  the  rest  of  the  world,  and  lacking  the  mission- 
ary zeal  which  would  lead  them  to  seek  it.  Others  are  dis- 
abled by  the  withering  blight  of  rationalism  from  doing 
more  than  preserving  alive  upon  their  own  altars  the  light 
of  Gospel  truth.  Others,  again,  are  overlaid  by  superstition 
and  idolatry,  and  in  their  missionary  ardour  are  dissemina- 
ting falsehood  instead  of  truth, — are  dealing  out  death  in- 
stead of  imparting  life.  With  the  English  and  American 
Churches  alone  are  found  those  gifts  of  nature  and  of  grace 
which  make  them  proper,  through  the  grace  of  God,  to 
enter  with  hope  and  confidence  upon  the  evangelizing  of 
the  world.  Embodying  in  their  liturgies  and  formularies, 
plainly  and  fully,  the  truths  of  the  Gospel — preserving 
almost  everything  of  primitive  practice  which  was  worth 


456         ECCLESIASTICAL  REMINISCENCES. 

preserving,  and  retaining  very  little,  if  any,  of  its  corrup- 
tions— organized  upon  the  closest  model  of  the  apostolic 
times — hindered,  especially  among  us,  by  very  few  restraints 
upon  religious  action,  we  have  been  evidently  set  apart  for 
the  missionary  work.  And  the  enterprise  of  these  nations, 
and  their  commercial  connexions  and  the  roving  spirit  of 
their  people,  and  the  rapid  growth  of  both  governments,  all 
indicate  that  God  is  preserving  them,  and  building  us  up  for 
this  very  end  of  spreading  his  Gospel  among  the  nations  of 
the  earth.  And,  besides  all  this,  a  common  lineage,  and  a 
common  language,  and  a  common  faith,  and  a  common 
commission,  point  us  to  the  division  of  this  work  without 
any  rivalry,  save  the  generous  one  of  spreading  the  truth — 
without  any  jealousy,  save  a  holy  jealousy  for  Zion  and  for 
Jerusalem.  Wherever  our  Missionaries  meet,  it  will  be  as 
brother  meeting  brother ;  souls,  united  by  the  '  one  Lord, 
one  faith,  one  baptism,  one  God  and  Father  of  all,'  will  go 
out  to  each  other  in  sweet  communion ;  and  the  Church 
will  find  that  there  is  in  her  a  stronger  bond  than  that  of 
interest  or  nature — the  bond  of  a  holy  faith  and  a  divine 
charity. 

"  And  just  as  clearly  as  God  has  marked  out  these  two 
nations  for  the  conversion  of  the  world,  does  He  seem  to 
have  overruled  their  policy  in  such  a  manner  as  to  give  the 
fullest  scope  to  that  particular  form  of  ecclesiastical  organi- 
sation which  has  grown  up  in  each.  An  establishment, 
connected  so  strictly  with  its  government  as  is  the  English 
Church,  could  not  move  in  its  integrity  as  a  Church,  upon 
the  great  Mahometan  or  heathen  empires,  without  at  once 
exciting  political  jealousy.  Her  bishops  and  ecclesiastics 
would  be  looked  upon  with  a  more  suspicious  eye  even  than 
those  of  Rome,  inasmuch  as  her  power  is  infinitely  greater, 
and  the  claims  of  Rome  are  spiritual  rather  than  temporal. 
Wonderfully,  therefore,  has  it  been  arranged  of  God,  that 


BISHOP    ELLIOTT.  457 

the  English  government  should  have  steadily  pursued  for 
ages  a  commercial  system  which  has  led  her  to  plant  and 
cherish  colonies  in  many  islands  and  on  every  continent. 
Empires  have  grown  up  around  her  emigrants  in  almost 
every  quarter  of  the  globe,  and  hundreds  of  millions  of 
heathen — nearly  one-third  of  the  world's  population — are 
linked  directly  with  her,  as  subjects  or  dependents  Upon 
these  and  over  these  can  her  establishment  have  full  do- 
minion, and  to  feed  these  growing  empires  with  the  bread 
of  life,  to  pour  in  light  upon  the  barbarism  which  surrounds 
her  and  belongs  to  her,  will  call  for  all  her  energies  and  ab- 
sorb all  her  resources.  She  cannot,  for  centuries  to  come, 
do  more — if  she  can  do  that,  it  will  be  a  mighty  work — 
than  satisfy  the  cries  of  her  own  children  and  the  necessi- 
ties of  her  actual  dependents.  The  heathen  world,  so  far 
as  it  lies  disconnected  from  her  gigantic  embrace,  and  the 
great  empires  of  Western  Asia,  are  cast  upon  us  for  the 
knowledge  of  the  Lord.  We  must  answer  their  demand 
for  the  Gospel,  or  it  will  be  answered  from  papal  Rome,  and 
Christianity  will  mourn  and  perish  in  the  house  of  its  friends. 
While  England  has  opened  China,  she  cannot  fill  it ;  nay, 
for  the  reason  given  just  now,  she  cannot  touch  it  in  her 
ecclesiastical  integrity.  Besides  her  Indian  empire,  her  Af- 
rican colonies,  her  island  continents,  her  red  and  black  sub- 
jects of  British  America,  would  feel  that  every  pound  and 
every  missionary  that  was  turned  towards  the  heathen  was 
so  much  taken  from  them.  What  are  three  bishops,  with 
perhaps  as  many  hundred  clergymen,  among  the  many, 
many  millions  of  Hindostan  ?  What  is  a  single  bishop  for 
such  a  world  as  Australia  ?  or  such  an  island  as  New 
Zealand  I  And  see  what  a  boundless  field  spreads  away 
north  of  the  Canadas  to  the  Frozen  Ocean,  covered  with 
her  Indian  subjects  !  No,  we  cannot,  and  we  must  not  hope 
that  England  can  do  and  will  do  everything.     She  will  do 


45S  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

the  part  wnich  God  has  allotted  to  her,— evangelize  her  em- 
pire colonies,  and  rejoice  that  we  are  in  a  condition,  from 
our  unshackled  ecclesiastical  arrangements,  from  the  anti- 
colonial  and  peaceful  policy  of  the  government  under  which 
we  live,  to  make  up  what  is  lacking  of  her  ability.  She 
will  rejoice  that  our  bishops  can  go,  simply  as  heralds  of  the 
Cross,  representing  nothing  but  the  Body  of  Christ,  seeking 
no  foothold  upon  the  soil,  asking  for  no  privileges  save  those 
of  scattering  the  seeds  of  truth,  and  preaching  the  unsearch- 
able riches  of  Christ." 

Turning  homewards,  to  a  survey  of  the  domestic  opera- 
tions of  the  American  Church,  the  preacher  drew  a  picture, 
in  which  one  of  his  distinguished  hearers  stood  foremost  on 
the  canvass  ;  and  to  which  allusion  the  emphatic  delivery 
of  the  bishop,  and  his  position — facing  the  altar,  at  the 
opposite  end  of  the  church — imparted  an  effect  which  may 
be  readily  conceived. 

"  In  strong  contrast  with  these  fields  of  foreign  labour,  yet 
equally  interesting  and  equally  important,  stand  out  the 
scenes  of  labour  of  our  domestic  Missionary  Bishop.  But 
neither  its  interest  nor  its  importance  belong  to  the  present, 
nor  yet  have  they  any  connexion  with  the  past ;  it  is  in  the 
future  that  they  lie  ;  it  is  through  a  vista  of  years  that 
they  must  be  viewed  and  calculated  !  Could  the  church- 
men of  a  generation  back  rise  from  their  graves,  and  look 
upon  the  country  which  they  scorned  and  neglected,  how 
bitter  would  be  their  sorrow,  how  deep  their  repentance  !  It 
would  be  hard  for  them  to  recognise  in  the  teeming  valley 
of  the  Mississippi,  with  its  powerful  states,  and  its  swelling 
population,  and  its  abounding  wealth,  the  far-off  land  which 
they  deemed  it  visionary  to  contemplate  and  fanaticism  to 
evangelize.  It  would  amaze  them  to  behold  eight 
bishops  clustering  around  that  missionary  whom  they 
deemed  an  enthusiast  for  turning  his  thoughts,  and  his 


BISHOP    ELLIOTT.  459 

prayers,  and  his  footsteps,  westward — looking  up  to  him 
as  their  'presiding'  father,   as  their  pioneer^  and  their 

guide  to  the  diocesses  over  which  they  ride — diocesses 
whose  very  names  would  strike  upon  their  ears  as  novel 
and  unnatural !  Could  they  speak  to  us.  how  anxiously 
would  they  exhort  us,  how  earnestly  would  they  pray  us, 
as  we  loved  our  Church — as  we  loved  our  country — as  we 
loved  the  name  of  Christ — not  to  be  to  that  rising  world  the 
cruel  step-mother  which  the  Church  of  their  day  had  proved 
herself!  They  would  tell  us  to  measure  the  future  by  the 
past,  and  in  that  virgin  valley  to  behold  the  mistress  of  this 
western  world.  They  would  bid  us  watch  the  rolling  tide 
of  population,  bearing  on  its  bosom  the  bold,  and  the  enter- 
prising, and  the  reckless  of  every  nation,  and  commingling 
them  into  one  mass  of  vigorous  thought  and  irresistible 
energy,  and  calculate  its  power  for  good  or  evil  to  all  futurity. 
They  would  warn  us  to  ponder  upon  the  reflex  influence 
which  must  throw  back  from  this  seat  of  political  dominion 
upon  the  institutions  of  the  East,  strengthening  their  moral 
power  and  preserving  their  religious  character,  or  else  corrupt- 
ing, debasing,  and  overthrowing  them.  They  would  bid  us 
meditate  upon  the  relation  this  ever-swelling  mass  of  think- 
ing, reasoning,  moving  creatures  must  have  upon  the 
Church  of  Christ  and  the  condition  of  His  kingdom,  and 
awake  to  duty — to  zeal — to  self-denial — to  self-devoted- 
ness." 

Bishop  Elliott's  elocution  is  as  good  as  his  style  ;  and 
afforded  me  another  confirmation  of  an  opinion  I  have  al- 
ready felt  constrained  to  express  in  favour  of  the  very  strik- 
ing superiority  of  American  to  English  preachers  in  the 
department  of  pulpit  delivery  ;  though  in  the  composition 
of  sermons  the  advantage  is,  as  a  rule,  on  the  side  of  the 
latter.  Free,  however,  from  those  conventionalisms  of  pro- 
nunciation and  tone,  which  very  commonly  mar  the  public 


460  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

performances  of  our  own  clergy,  the  American  clergyman, 
both  in  the  desk  and  the  pulpit,  exhibits  a  simplicity*  in  his 
reading  and  delivery  that  secures  the  attention,  while  it 
never  offends  the  taste  ;  evidencing  the  severe  study  and 
culture  which  has  been  bestowed  on  this  important  branch 
of  clerical  preparation. 

As  it  was  one  of  the  latest,  so  one  of  the  most  interesting 
incidents  attending  my  residence  in  America,  was  an  intro- 
duction to  the  intelligent  traveller  and  devoted  missionary, 
on  whom  apostolic  hands  were  this  day  laid.  The  name  of 
Horatio  Southgate,  the  American  Martyn,  is  already  famil- 
iar to  the  English  Churchman,  who  has,  I  cannot  doubt,  fol- 
lowed him  through  his  wide  wanderings,  and  sympathised 
with  him  in  his  arduous  labours  and  severe  sufferings  among 
the  downtrodden  Christians  of  the  East.  Armenia,  Kurdis- 
tan, Persia,  and  Mesopotamia,  have  successively  witnessed 
the  untiring  zeal  of  this  laborious  missionary ;  who  now  re- 
turns to  the  ancient  Syrian  [Jacobite]  Church — into  which 
the  American  Church  has  already  introduced  some  healthy 
blood, — as  a  missionary  bishop  of  the  same  Catholic  family, 
to  aid  the  Anglican  Church  in  rebuilding  its  waste  places, 
and  restoring,  by  friendly  advice  and  assistance  in  its  apos- 
tolic heads,  and  their  faithful  but  persecuted  flocks,  the 
ancient  glory  of  Antioch's  see. 

I  received  a  volume  of  Bishop  Southgate's  recent  "  Visit 
to  the  Syrian  Church  of  Mesopotamia,"  (the  secondt  book 
of  travels  he  has  sent  to  the  press,)  at  his  hands  during  our 
short  acquaintance,  which  details  numerous  facts  relative  to 

*  "The  last  degree  of  refinement  is  simplicity;  the  highest  eloquence  is  the 
plainest;  the  most  effective  style  is  the  pure,  severe,  and  vigorous  manner,  of 
which  the  great  masters  are  the  best  teachers." — Nicholas  Biddle. 

t  The  first  work  (in  two  volumes)  details  some  of  Dr.  Southgate's  journey- 
ings  in  Armenia,  Kurdistan,  and  Asia  Minor,  with  observations  on  the  condition 
of  Mahomedanism  and  Christianity  in  the  East. 


BISHOP    SOUTHGATE.  461 

that  ancient  Catholic  community,*  as  interesting  to  the  an- 
tiquary as  to  the  Christian.  Its  patriarch,  whose  residence 
is  at  Mardin,  possesses  in  a  record  of  unknown  antiquity 
the  annals  of  his  predecessors  in  the  patriarchate  of  An- 
tioch,  back  to  St.  Peter,  its  first  bishop.  The  signatures  of 
the  greatest  part  of  their  names,  which  number  141,  is  in 
the  handwriting  of  the  patriarchs  themselves  ;  and  are  tra- 
ditionally the  entries  of  each,  including  St.  Peter  himself. 
The  fact  is  not  impossible  (though  Bishop  Southgate  does 
not  undertake  to  assert  its  undoubted  authenticity),  as  the 
materials  and  appearance  of  the  manuscript  prove  its  ex- 
treme age  ;  and  it  is  well  known  to  have  been  (who  can 
doubt,  by  a  providential  control?)  the  custom  of  all  the 
early  Churches  to  keep  a  similar  record :  by  which  we  are 
now  in  possession  of  the  line  of  bishops  in  every  apostolic 
see. 

The  sympathy  which  English  and  American  Churchmen 
ought  to  feel  towards  this  ancient  communion  is  increased 
by  the  striking  points  of  similarity  between  the  two 
Churches, — a  similarity  extending  to  almost  every  part  of 
government,  worship,  and  doctrine.  It  is  to  be  trusted  that 
the  English  Church  will  actively  co-operate  with  her  Amer- 
ican daughter  in  the  great  work  of  Christian  unity,  nor 
be  turned  aside  by  the  ignorant  cavils  of  short-sighted  un- 
read objectors,  whose  visions  are  filled  with  a  "  protestant 

*  I  use  the  word  Catholic  here,  as  elsewhere,  in  the  sense  in  which  our 
Church  uses  it — its  literal,  primitive,  and  only  sense;  in  the  sense  in  which  it 
was  used  by  Christians  universally  in  the  first  six  centuries,  and  in  which  every 
part  of  the  regular  Christian  family,  save  only  that  section  of  it  paying  allegiance 
to  the  Roman  Bishop,  continue  to  use  it  at  this  day.  I  leave  to  the  ignorant  the 
commission  of  sucfc  a  blunder  as  "  Roman  Catholic,"  which  term,  remarks 
Bishop  Chase  (commenting  on  the  Visitation  Service  in  the  Prayer-book),  "like 
Frerth  or  British  Catholic,  would  be  an  absurdity ;"  and  to  the  deliberate  fal- 
sifier of  language,  the  exclusive  application  of  the  term  "  Catholic"  to  the  ad- 
herents of  the  Roman  see. 


462  ECCLESIASTICAL    REMINISCENCES. 

establishment"  and  their  sympathy  for  these  desolate  and 
forsaken  daughters,  the  first-born  of  the  glorious  mission  of 
our  ascended  Lord,  is  extinguished  in  their  unutterably 
doltish  apprehensions  that,  being  catholic  and  apostolic, 
they  are,  necessarily,  "popish." 

"  The  position  of  our  Church,"  writes  Bishop  Southgate, 
"  is  one  in  which  she  appears  as  chiefly  intent  upon  a  unity 
of  faith,  and  yet  as  wanting  in  nothing  which  is  essential 
to  her  character  as  a  branch  of  the  Church  Universal.  It 
is  one  in  which  we  must  feel  compelled  to  stand  upon  the 
sure  basis  of  what  is  evidently  necessary  to  Christian  com- 
munion ;  one  in  which  we  have  little  temptation  to  form 
alliances  upon  incidental  resemblances  in  things  of  minor 
importance  ;  one  in  which  it  is  most  needful  for  their  own 
good  that  we  should  appear  to  the  Eastern  Churches  ;  one 
in  which  we  may  sustain  the  exalted  character  of  seeking 
a  restoration  of  unity  on  truly  primitive  grounds.  May 
we  have  grace  to  understand  and  improve  our  advantages, 
turning  neither  to  the  right  hand  nor  to  the  left;  presenting 
the  Church  in  her  pure  faith  and  her  unsullied  worship  to 
eyes  which  will  not  fail,  the  more  single  their  vision  be- 
comes, to  be  attracted  by  the  one  and  love  the  other  !  Tbere 
is  no  Church  on  earth  which  has  the  power  for  good  among 
the  Eastern  Christians  which  the  Church  of  England  and 
the  sister  Church  in  the  United  States  possess.  May  we 
use  it  as  an  inestimable  treasure,  as  a  precious  talent  for 
which  we  must  give  account !" 

One  year  only  was  occupied  in  the  duties  of  my  new 
parish,  when  domestic  affairs  abruptly  terminated  my  con- 
nexion with  Maryland  and  the  American  Church.  I  took 
final  leave  of  the  United  States  on  the  10th  of  June,  in  the 
"  fast-sailing  packet-ship  Switzerland"  (commanded  by 
Captain  Knight),  from  New  York,  being  the  same  month 
and  the  same  day  of  the  month  on  which  I  first  arrived  at 


CONCLUSION.  463 

that  port,  eleven  years  previously.  After  an  agreeable  pas 
sage,  unmarked  by  any  events  worth  recording,  we  reached 
London  on  the  1st  of  July  ;  with  which  event  this  record, 
for  the  most  part  hastily  compiled,  and  in  the  absence  of 
many  materials  which  would  have  additionally  assisted  me 
in  the  illustration  of  my  subject,  is  brought  to  a  close. 


l»  • 


t* 


m 


APPENDIX, 

No.  I. 

TRINITY  CHURCH,  NEW  YORK. 
(Abridged  from  Mr.  Onderdonk's  History  of  the  New  York  churches.) 


With  the  erection  of  this  magnificent  structure  may  be  said 
to  commence  a  new  era  in  the  church  architecture  of  America. 
Heretofore,  as  a  general  rule,  attention  to  the  pure  and  uncor- 
rupted  style  of  the  ancients  has  been  but  little  regarded  in  the 
construction  of  our  churches  ;  and  the  symmetrical  proportions 
and  flowing  lines  of  the  fine  old  classic  models,  which  might  be 
adopted  in  very  many  cases  without  increased  expense,  are  passed 
over  with  indifference,  or  sacrificed  to  capricious  fancy.  With 
the  advancement  of  the  arts,  however,  architectonic  taste  must 
necessarily  become  more  cultivated  and  refined,  and  it  is  to  be 
hoped  that  ere  long  it  will  be  considered  as  much  a  reproach  to 
dispense  with  the  rules  of  architectural  composition  in  the  con- 
struction of  an  edifice,  as  it  now  is  to  dispense  with  the  rules  of 
perspective  in  the  delineation  of  a  drawing. 

The  structure  we  are  now  treating  of  displays  elegant  propor- 
tions and  admirable  uniformity,  and  is  in  all  respects  truly  cred- 
itable to  the  age  and  nation,  as  well  as  a  lasting  monument  of  the 
munificent  character  of  its  venerable  corporation.  The  whole  of 
this  immense  fabric,  including  the  tower  and  spire,  is  constructed 
of  solid  stone.  It  was  quarried  expressly  for  this  church  at  Little 
Falls,  New  Jersey,  four  miles  beyond  Paterson,  on  the  Passaic, 
and  contiguous  to  the  Morris  Canal,  through  which  it  was  con- 
veyed to  Newark,  and  thence  by  vessels  to  New  York.  The 
quarry  was  originally  opened  a  few  years  since,  to  furnish  stone 
for  the  construction  of  an  aqueduct  over  the  Passaic,  and  has 
there  proved  to  be  of  a  very  superior  quality,  not  only  in  its  tone 
and  colour,  but  for  its  capability  of  resisting  the  action  of  water 
and  of  frost.     Throughout  the  building  this  stone  is  laid  on  its 

30 


466  APPENDIX. 

natural  bed,  the  most  durable  position  in  which  it  can  be  placed, 
and  will,  unless  destroyed  by  some  unforeseen  calamity,  almost 
defy  the  mouldering  hand  of  Time.  The  style  of  architecture  is 
the  perpendicular  Gothic,  the  peculiar  characteristic  of  which  is, 
that  the  mullions  of  the  windows  and  the  ornamented  panellings 
run  in  perpendicular  lines.  This  term  originated  with  Mr. 
Thomas  Rickman,  a  celebrated  architect  of  Liverpool,  and  was 
applied  by  him  to  all  English  buildings  erected  after  the  accession 
of  King  Richard  II.,  down  to  the  final  disuse  of  the  pointed  arch, 
and  seems  to  designate  more  forcibly  than  any  other  the  desired 
distinction.  The  pointed  arch,  struck  from  two  centres  on  the 
line  of  its  base,  was  adopted  by  Mr.  Upjohn,  the  architect,  and 
has  been  strictly  adhered  to  throughout  the  building ;  its  simple 
form  having  been  preferred  to  the  Tudor  or  flat  arch,  as  more  in 
harmony  with  the  general  design. 

Several  fine  views  of  this  church  may  be  had  from  the  con- 
tiguous streets.  In  approaching  it  from  the  lower  part  of  Broad- 
way, the  south  side  of  the  edifice  and  front  of  the  tower  appear  to 
very  great  advantage.  The  most  picturesque  appearance,  how- 
ever, is  presented  from  the  corner  of  Rector  Street  and  Trinity 
Place.  Here  the  chancel  and  south-aisle  windows,  the  clerestory, 
the  tower,  and  the  spire,  are  seen  rising  in  succession  one  above 
the  other,  each  exhibiting  its  fine  proportions  and  exquisite  sym- 
metry, and  all  alike  bewildering  the  eye  with  the  plenitude  of 
their  ornament  and  the  finish  of  their  decoration.  In  passing 
round  the  church,  the  extent  and  arrangement  of  the  plan  are 
more  readily  discernible,  and  an  opportunity  is  given  to  examine 
the  detail  and  character  of  the  workmanship. 

[When  will  the  same  be  said  of  St.  Paul's  cathedral?  whose 
situation,  with  shops  and  warehouses  crowding  upon  it,  conceal- 
ing its  fair  and  matchless  proportions,  and  the  disgraceful  state  of 
all  the  approaches  to  it,  are  a  scandal  both  to  the  civic  and  the 
ecclesiastical  authorities ;  besides  reflecting  on  the  public  spirit 
of  the  citizens  of  London,  who  pull  down  a  church  to  improve  the 
site  of  a  merchant's  exchange,  whilst  they  voluntarily  submit  to 
the  inconvenience  of  an  obstructed  thoroughfare  in  their  indiffer- 
ence to  the  situation  and  aspect  of  their  diocesan  temple  ! !  So 
Mammon  has  the  chief  worship  in  London,  whilst  the  temple  of 
God,  cold,  damp,  deserted,  like  a  tomb  ;  its  untrodden  vestibule 
and   steps  green   with   their  unused   decay;    and   the   banished 


APPENDIX.  467 

altar,*  stands,  in  its  prison-like  aspect,  a  fit  emblem  and  monu- 
ment of  a  "  protestant  "  age  !] 

The  aisle  wall  of  Trinity,  which  rises  to  the  height  of  forty  feet, 
is  supported  by  eight  substantial  buttresses,  graduated  into  three 
stages  by  set-ofFs,  and  capped  by  richly  crocketted  gables  termin- 
ating with  a  finial.  Between  the  buttresses,  pointed  windows, 
elaborately  ornamented  by  bold  but  delicately  cut  stone  tracery, 
and  divided  into  three  bays  by  two  perpendicular  mullions  con- 
taining metal  sashes  glazed  by  panes  of  stained  glass  in  the  lozenge 
and  other  forms,  rise  to  the  height  of  twenty-four  feet  from 
the  sill  to  the  apex  of  the  arch.  A  moulded  battlement  surmounts 
this  wall,  extending  its  whole  length,  harmonising  with  the  gener- 
al style,  and  giving  a  finish  and  beauty  to  its  appearance. 

The  clerestory,  which  is  supported  by  massive  piers  of  hewn 
stone  and  a  succession  of  arches  springing  from  them,  rises  in 
magnificent  proportion  above  the  aisle,  and  contains  nine  orna- 
mented windows,  giving  light  to  the  nave,  varied  in  detail,  but 
similar  in  general  design  to  those  already  noticed.  The  but- 
tresses between  them  are  graduated  into  two  stages  by  a  single 
set-off,  and  are  crowned,  in  addition  to  a  gable,  by  light  and  airy 
pinnacles,  with  crockets  at  the  angles  and  terminating  with  a 
finial.  An  embattled  parapet  extends  along  the  top  of  the  wall, 
from  the  tower  to  the  extreme  west  end.  The  extent  of  the 
chancel  is  denoted  by  two  large  octagonal  pinnacles,  richly  or- 
namented, and  rising  above  the  roof  to  a  greater  height  than  any 
of  the  others. 

On  the  north  and  south  sides  of  the  church  lateral  porches, 
supported  at  the  angles  by  buttresses  set  square,  and  surmounted 
by  parapets  pierced  with  quatrefoil  and  other  suitable  enrich- 
ments, give  entrance  to  the  interior  by  three  doors  each. 

The  chancel  end  of  the  church  possesses  great  merit,  and  pre- 
sents to  the  eye  a  chastity  and  simplicity  of  effect,  in  strict  ac- 
cordance with  architectural  taste.  It  also  proves  that  the  beauty 
and  symmetry  of  a  design  does  not  depend  so  much  upon  the 
amount  of  ornament  introduced  into  its  composition,  as  upon  the 

*  The  glorious  dome  of  St.  Paul's  was  designed  by  the  architect  to  canopy 
the  principal  altar.  It  looks  down  upon  the  money-changers'  tables,  and  the 
dally  sacrilege  of  a  show  for  the  entertainment  of  the  sight-seeing,  paying 
visitors  ! ! !  Westminster  Abbey,  also,  with  its  disfiguring  concealments  outside, 
and  its  dust  and  dilapidation  within,  is  another  national  disgrace. 


468  APPENDIX. 

adaptation  and  fitness  of  its  various  parts,  and  the  perfection  of 
hs  outline  and  general  contour.  No  ornaments  are  introduced 
simply  as  such,  but  the  whole  grandeur  and  artistic  effect  of  the 
view  arises  from  that  peculiar  harmonising  of  all  the  parts, 
which  results  from  masterlike  arrangement  and  an  intimate 
knowledge  of  true  architectural  principles.  It  is  at  once  perceiv- 
ed that  the  altar  window  is  the  most  striking  and  magnificent 
feature  of  this  view.  Its  elaborate  and  beautiful  tracery  attests 
the  skill  of  the  architect,  and  affords  also  to  the  admirer  of  the 
arts  a  subject  worthy  his  contemplation  and  his  study.  It  is  dis- 
tant from  the  ground  twenty  feet,  ana  rises  to  the  apex  sixty-five 
feet,  and  is  twenty-five  feet  in  width.  Its  great  breadth  is  distri- 
buted into  seven  bays  by  two  principal  and  four  subordinate 
mullions,  and  its  length  divided  from  the  sill  to  the  spring  of  the 
arch  into  two  grand  sections  by  a  transom  mullion  in  the  centre. 
The  heading  is  distributed  into  minor  lights  or  openings,  formed 
by  numerous  sub-divisions,  ornamented  by  feathered  tracery  ex- 
hibiting much  skill  in  the  cutting.  The  jambs  and  arch  mould- 
ings are  well  executed,  bold,  and  characteristic  of  the  age  and 
style  of  the  architecture  ;  the  label  or  weather- moulding  is  taste- 
ful and  appropriate,  and  the  splay  on  the  back  is  made  very 
effective  by  the  receding  of  the  wall  above.  Directly  over  this 
window  is  another  of  small  dimensions,  which  serves  to  ventilate 
the  roof,  cut  in  quatrefoil,  and  deeply  set  in  the  wall.  Above 
the  whole  extends  a  perpendicular  perforated  parapet,  softening 
the  asperity  of  the  solid  lines  of  the  high  pitched  roof,  and  crown- 
ed upon  the  apex  by  a  cross.  The  centre  portion  of  this  front,  or 
that  containing  the  windows  just  described,  is  separated  from  its 
laterals  by  buttresses  set  square,  graduated  and  fitted  into  several 
stages,  and  terminating  by  octagonal  crocketted  pinnacles,  en- 
riched by  finials.  The  clerestory,  as  seen  in  this  view,  is  sup- 
ported by  flying  buttresses  springing  from  the  walls  of  the  vestry, 
which  is  lighted  by  the  three  homologous  windows  near  the 
ground. 

In  the  tower  the  proper  proportion  between  it  and  the  body  of 
the  church  is  carefully  maintained.  It  measures  at  the  base, 
outside  the  walls,  thirty  feet  on  each  side,  and  is  strengthened  on 
the  outer  angles  by  double  buttresses  four  feet  in  width,  set  square 
from  the  wall,  and  projecting  at  their  bases  seven  feet  and  six 
inches.     These  buttresses  are  graduated  into  four  sections,  with 


APPENDIX. 


469 


panelled  work  upon  the  face,  and  rise  to  the  height  of  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty-six  feet,  where  they  terminate  by  ornamented 
gables.     About  sixty  feet  from  the  ground  the  sides  of  the  tower 
pinnacles  commence,  and  as  the  buttresses  in  their  ascent  dimin- 
ish in  size,  are  increasingly  developed,  until  at  last  the  whole  of 
them  is  formed.     The  walls  of  the  tower  are  six  feet  nine  inches 
thick  at  their  commencement,  and  four  feet  thick  under  the  em- 
battled parapet.     The  tower  porch  which  leads  into  the  vestibule 
is  twenty  feet  in  width  including  the  buttresses,  and  thirty  feet  in 
height  to  the  top  of  the  parapet.     In  passing  through  the  wall, 
which  is  here  eight  feet  and  six  inches  thick,  these  dimensions 
are  gradually  decreased  by  a  receding  arch  richly  ornamented 
by  carved  tracery,  which  renders  it  at  its  termination  but  ten  feet 
wide  in  the  clear  and  eighteen  feet  in  height.     On  either  side  it 
is  flanked  by  panelled  buttresses,  with  moulded  set-offs,  termina- 
ting in  a  gable  of  elaborate  workmanship,  and  is  covered  by  a 
decorated  label,  upon  which  is  sculptured  in  a  chaste  and  beauti- 
ful manner  a  continuous  wreath,  formed  of  oak-leaves  and  acorns. 
Over  the  whole  is  a  perforated  moulded  battlement,  of  quatrefoil 
and  trefoil,  with  the  centre  compartment  running  into  an  open 
arch,  under  which  is  placed  a  pedestal  supporting  a  bishop's  mi- 
tre, and  continuing  the  associations  connected  with  the  one  that 
crowned  the  apex  of  the  circular  portico  of  the  former  edifice. 

Immediately  above  this  door,  and  occupying  the  greater  portion 
of  the  lower  section  of  the  tower,  which  is  sixty  feet  in  height,  is 
a  noble  window,  divided  into  four  lights  by  mullions,  and  into 
three  stories  by  a  main  transom  in  the  centre,  and  another  at  the 
springing  of  the  arch.     The  compartments  thus  made  form  each 
a  pointed  feather-arch,  into  which,  as  in  the  other  windows  of  the 
church,  are  set  metal  sashes  glazed  with  stained  glass  panes.     A 
crocketted  ogee  label,  elaborately  sculptured,  and  crowned  at  the 
apex  by  a  finial,  runs  over  this  window,  and  presents  a  striking 
and  beautiful  appearance.     Upon  either  side  of  this  section  of 
the  tower  are  two  canopied  tabernacle  niches,  with  pedestals  con- 
taining statues  of  the  four  evangelists  cut  in  stone.     The  next 
story  of  the  tower  contains  the  clock,  which  is  encompassed  by  a 
richly  ornamented  frame  of  the  lozenge  form,  with  the  moulding 
receding  as  far  into  the  massive  walls  as  was  practicable  for  its 
uses.     Above  are  the  belfry  windows,  composed  of  two  independ- 
ent compartments,  separated   by  a  strong   pier,   and   each  sur- 


470  APPENDIX. 

mounted  by  a  decorated  ogee  label,  similar  to  that  over  the  great 
window  below.  The  belfry  contains  a  chime  of  eight  bells. 
The  coping  of  the  tower  consists  of  a  cornice,  ornamented  at  re- 
gular distances  with  clusters  of  foliage  sculptured  upon  the  ends 
of  the  long-headers,  which  pass  as  braces  through  the  thickness 
of  the  wall,  and  is  crowned  with  a  handsome  embattled  parapet 
one  hundred  and  twenty-seven  feet  from  the  ground,  divided  at 
the  angles  by  octagonal  crocketted  pinnacles  rising  from  the  but- 
tresses below,  and  terminating  by  richly  sculptured  finials. 

Four  arches  are  sprung  from  the  angles  of  the  tower  to  receive 
the  superstructure  of  the  spire,  which  for  fine  proportion  and  ad- 
mirable effect  is  perhaps  not  inferior  to  any  heretofore  construct- 
ed, and  may,  without  suffering  by  the  contrast,  be  classed  with 
those  splendid  English  archetypes  of  Salisbury  and  Chichester. 
It  is  of  octagonal  form,  and  rises  from  its  base  in  the  centre  of 
the  tower,  to  the  top  of  the  cross  which  surmounts  it,  to  the  height 
of  one  hundred  and  thirty-seven  feet,  which  makes  it,  in  con- 
nexion with  the  tower,  two  hundred  and  sixty-four  feet  from  the 
ground.  Its  base  is  ornamented  by  four  tabernacle  windows,  and 
by  the  same  number  of  flying  buttresses  springing  from  the  cor- 
ners of  the  tower.  Each  face  of  the  octagon  is  decorated  at  re- 
gular intervals  by  lozenge-shaped  openings,  and  the  angles  are 
embellished  by  crocketted  mouldings,  which  serve  to  enhance  the*' 
beauty  and  effect  of  its  needle-like  appearance,  without  in  any 
way  marring  its  fine  proportions.  Near  the  apex,  very  delicate 
and  beautiful  net-work  tracery  extends  around  the  spire ;  and 
over  all,  surmounting  the  very  capstone,  stands  in  bold  relief 
against  the  sky  the  Christian's  emblem — a  plain,vunornamented 

CROSS. 

A  spiral  staircase,  composed  of  stone  steps  projecting  from  the 
wall,  and  lighted  by  narrow  pointed  windows  between  the  west- 
ern buttress  of  the  tower  and  the  body  of  the  church,  leads  to 
the  clock  and  belfry,  whence  by  other  stairs  access  to  the  spire 
is  had,  where  an  ascent  to  within  twenty  feet  of  the  apex  is  prac- 
ticable. 

Having  now  described  the  exterior  of  this  magnificent  church, 
at  present  the  finest  and  most  costly  in  our  country,  we  will  pro- 
ceed through  the  front  porch  into  the  vestibule  or  tower.  This 
vestibule  is  eighteen  feet  square,  and  nearly  twenty  feet  in  height. 
Its  ceiling  is  constructed  of  oak  beams,  resting  upon  corbels  pro- 


APPENDIX.  471 

jecting  from  the  walls,  and  strengthened  by  perforated  spandrils, 
und  has  an  opening  in  the  centre  to  allow  the  admission  of  bells, 
&c.  into  the  interior  of  the  tower.  Continuing  onward,  we  pass 
through  the  inner  door  of  the  vestibule,  into  a  passage  under  the 
organ-loft,  leading  directly  to  the  body  of  the  church.  This 
view  is  very  imposing  to  the  eye,  from  the  fine  perspective  pro- 
duced by  beholding  at  one  glance  the  full  length  of  the  nave  from 
the  choir  to  the  great  altar  window,  a  distance  of  one  hundred 
and  thirty-seven  feet,  and  by  the  beautiful  effect  of  the  light 
thrown  into  the  church  by  means  of  the  aisle  and  clerestory  win- 
dows. The  nave  is  thirty-six  feet  in  width,  and  rises  to  its  ex- 
treme height,  sixty-seven  feet  and  six  inches.  It  is  supported  on 
either  side  by  a  colonnade  of  seven  perpendicular  English  piers 
of  cut  stone,  which  serve  also,  in  connexion  with  massive  and 
substantial  arches  springing  from  them,  to  maintain  the  clerestory 
walls.  The  capitals  of  these  piers  are  of  simple  design,  consist- 
ing merely  of  foliated  headings  to  slender  cylindrical  shafts  ris- 
ing between  their  principal  projections,  and  the  bases  of  them  are 
formed  by  three  courses  of  appropriate  mouldings.  Between 
every  two  arches,  reeded  columns,  springing  from  the  principal 
members  of  the  piers,  join  with  the  clerestory  wall,  and  finish 
with  foliated  capitals ;  from  which  branch  off,  in  different  direc- 
tions, the  ribs  of  the  vaulting.  Directly  over  the  arches  are  the 
clerestory  windows,  numbering  nine  on  a  side,  ornamented  by 
moulded  labels,  resting  upon  corbels,  and  exhibiting  in  other 
respects  the  same  beautiful  divisions  and  feathered  tracery  already 
noticed  in  treating  of  their  exterior  appearance.  The  vaulting 
of  the  ceiling  over  the  nave  is  elegantly  pitched,  and  the  ribs  di- 
verging from  the  slender  columns  before  mentioned,  spread  them- 
selves gracefully  over  the  groining,  and  are  decorated  at  their 
various  intersections  by  bosses  formed  of  clustered  foliage.  The 
vaulting  of  the  aisles  is  of  the  same  character  as  that  of  the  nave, 
and  equally  as  good,  but  not  so  effective  on  account  of  the  differ- 
ence in  elevation  and  length. 

The  chancel,  which  comes  next  in  order,  deserves  particular 
notice  for  its  grandeur  and  elaborate  decoration.  It  is  raised  two 
feet  above  the  level  of  the  ground  pavement  and  is  situated  in  a 
recess  thirty-three  feet  deep,  separated  from  the  body  of  the 
church  by  a  noble  arch  springing  from  two  great  piers  on  either 
side  the  nave.     Its  walls  are  richly  ornamented  by  tracery  and 


472  APPENDIX. 

panel  work  covering  all  their  space,  and  it  is  lighted  by  the  great 
altar  window  and  four  others  in  the  clerestory.  Immediately 
above  its  centre,  in  the  ceiling  of  the  nave,  at  the  intersection 
of  the  ribs,  is  a  large  and  beautiful  boss  formed  by  the  letters 
X  $.  0.  encircled  with  foliage  of  different  patterns.  The  altar 
is  situated  near  the  western  wall,  directly  in  front  of  the  altar 
screen,  which  is  thirty  feet  wide  and  twenty  feet  high,  and  is 
constructed  of  oak  richly  and  splendidly  carved.  The  chancel 
railing,  which  is  also  of  carved  oak,  extends  between  the  two 
great  piers  that  support  the  chancel  arch. 

From  the  chancel  a  fine  view  of  the  nave  looking  east  is  pre- 
sented, taking  in  the  choir  and  the  interior  of  the  tower,  which  is 
exposed  to  sight  through  a  massive  arch  in  its  rear  wall,  to  the 
large  front  window  immediately  above  the  porch.  The  light 
from  this  window,  which  comes  in  through  stained  glass  panes, 
is  rendered  radiant  by  the  many  apertures  and  projections  of  the 
organ,  and  brings  out  in  bold  relief  the  ornamented  pinnacles  and 
handsome  perforated  work  with  which  this  instrument  abounds. 
The  choir  is  supported  by  beams  laid  upon  corbels  projecting 
from  the  side  walls  of  the  tower,  and  is  so  situated  that  it  does 
not  encroach  upon  the  interior  of  the  church.  The  screen  in 
front  of  it,  like  all  the  wood  work,  is  of  oak,  handsomely  de- 
signed and  carved.  The  organ,  a  magnificent  instrument,  is 
from  the  manufactory  of  Mr.  Henry  Erben,  by  whom,  under  the 
superintendence  of  Dr.  Hodges,  the  musical  director  of  the  par- 
ish, it  was  constructed.  The  case,  which  is  of  oak,  was  designed 
by  Mr.  Upjohn,  and  its  exceedingly  rich  appearance  adds  an  im- 
portant feature  to  the  interior  view  of  the  church.  The  stops  of 
the  organ,  so  far  as  the  stops  of  pipes  are  concerned,  barely  ex- 
ceed thirty  ;  with  the  couplers,  a  little  over  forty ;  but  the  range 
or  compass  of  the  instrument  is  altogether  unparalleled  in  this 
country.  There  are  four  diapason  and  two  reed  pipes,  each  six- 
teen feet  in  length,  a  double  diapason  pipe,  thirty-two  feet  in 
length,  measuring  internally  thirty  by  thirty-six  inches,  besides 
an  innumerable  quantity  of  smaller  pipes  of  various  dimensions. 
The  swell  is  an  invention  of  Dr.  Hodges,  and  is  of  the  most  ap- 
proved kind. 

From  the  choir  you  look  down  upon  the  floor  of  the  church, 
the  pews  of  which  are  constructed  of  oak ;  and  the  aisles,  which 
are  eight  feet  in  width,  are  paved  with  tessellated  brown  stone. 


APPENDIX.  4/3 

The  desk  and  pulpit  stand  upon  opposite  sides  of  the  nave,  some- 
what in  advance  of  the  chancel,  and  are  of  beautiful  design  and 
elaborate  workmanship.  No  galleries  have  been  erected  in  the 
church,  and  in  fact  there  should  be  none,  for  in  an  edifice  like 
Trinity,  galleries,  unless  of  the  character  of  the  ancient  trifo- 
rium,  would  only  detract  from  the  grandeur  and  magnificence  of 
the  building. 

The  extensive  cemetery  in  which  the  church  is  erected  is  one 
of  the  most  ancient  in  the  city,  having  been  the  resting-place  of 
successive  generations  for  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  years.  It 
is  crowded  with  monumental  records,  some  of  them  bearing  as 
early  a  date  as  1704,  and  others  supposed  to  be  more  ancient, 
but  with  their  inscriptions  entirely  effaced.  Among  their  num- 
ber are  two,  erected  to  men,  the  one  a  statesman  and  the  other  a 
warrior,  whose  memories  are  enshrined  within  the  hearts  of  all 
America.  The  monument  of  Alexander  Hamilton  consists  of  a 
polyedron  of  white  marble,  ornamented  at  the  edges  by  fluted 
pilasters,  and  surmounted  upon  the  corners  by  four  urns,  and 
upon  the  centre  by  a  handsome  pyramid.  It  bears  the  following 
inscription : — 

TO    THE    MEMORY    OF 

ALEXANDER  HAMILTON. 

THE     CORPORATION     OF     TRINITY     CHURCH    HAS    ERECTED    THIS 

MONUMENT, 

IN    TESTIMONY    OF    THEIR    RESPECT    FOR 
THE     PATRIOT     OF     INCORRUPTIBLE     INTEGRITY, 

THE    SOLDIER    OF    APPROVED    VALOUR, 
THE     STATESMAN     OF     CONSUMMATE     WISDOM  ; 

WHOSE     TALENTS    AND    VIRTUES    WILL     BE     ADMIRED 

BY    GRATEFUL    POSTERITY 

LONG    AFTER     THIS     MARBLE     SHALL     HAVE     MOULDERED     INTO 

DUST. 

HE  DIED  JULY  12TH,  1804,  AGED  49. 

The  charter  of  Trinity  church,  a  document  which  makes  some 
thirty  printed  pages,  was  granted   by  letters  patent,  under  the 


474  APPENDIX. 

great  seal  of  the  colony  of  New  York,  and  bears  date  the  sixth 
of  May,  1697.  It  incorporates  the  parish  into  a  body  politic, 
under  the  name  of  the  "  Rector  and  Inhabitants  of  New  York  in 
communion  with  the  Protestant  Church  of  England,  as  established 
by  law,"  and  grants  the  plot  of  ground  now  occupied  by  the 
church  and  cemetery,  together  with  certain  specified  privileges 
and  immunities,  for  the  yearly  rent  of  "  One  Pepper  Corn,"  to  be 
paid  on  the  "  Feast  Day  of  the  Annunciation  of  our  blessed  Vir- 
gin Mary,"  provided  the  same  be  lawfully  demanded. 

After  the  United  States  had  cast  off  their  allegiance  to  Great 
Britain  and  established  their  independence,  the  legislature  of 
New  York,  by  an  act  passed  the  seventeenth  day  of  April,  1784, 
made  such  alterations  in  the  above  charter  as  were  necessary  to 
conform  it  to  the  constitution  of  the  state.  By  the  same  act,  the 
doubts  which  had  previously  arisen  on  those  parts  of  the  charter 
relating  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  city  in  communion  of  the  Church 
of  England,  were  removed  for  all  future  time,  by  the  explicit 
enactment  that  such  persons  only  as  professed  themselves  mem- 
bers of  the  Episcopal  Church,  and  held  or  enjoyed  a  pew  or  seat 
in  the  church  concerned,  and  regularly  paid  for  its  support,  and 
such  others  as  received  the  Holy  Sacrament  of  the  Lord's  Supper 
in  the  said  church,  at  least  once  in  every  year,  being  inhabitants 
of  the  city  and  county  of  New  York,  should  alone  be  entitled  to 
the  rights  and  privileges  originally  secured  without  distinction  to 
all  the  inhabitants  of  the  city  in  communion  with  the  Church  of 
England.  In  1788,  by  another  act  of  the  legislature,  the  corpo- 
ration of  Trinity  church  was  allowed  to  assume  a  new  title ; 
which  title,  however,  was  not  to  invalidate  any  of  the  grants 
made  to  or  by  it  under  the  former  name,  nor  to  abrogate  in  any 
manner  its  existing  rights  and  privileges.  By  a  subsequent  simi- 
lar process  in  1813,  the  title  was  again  altered  to  "  The  Rector, 
Churchwardens,  and  Vestrymen,  of  Trinity  Church,  in  the  city 
of  New  York." 

[The  vestry  of  Trinity  have  proved  themselves  faithful  trus- 
tees, not  only  in  furthering  the  immediate  objects  of  the  Church 
in  their  own  parish,  but  in  the  aid  which  they  are  ever  prompt  to 
render  to  the  general  cause  of  religion  and  benevolence.] 

The  communion-plate  belonging  to  Trinity  parish  is  massive 
and  valuable,  and  consists  of  a  number  of  flagons,  patens,  cha- 
lices, and  plates,  some  of  which  bear  the  royal  arms,  and  were 


APPENDIX.  475 

presented  by  William  and  Mary,  and  Queen  Anne.  Other 
pieces,  engraved  with  a  like  device,  contain  the  simple  initials 
G.  R.  It  seems  probable  that  George  I.,  George  II.,  and  George 
III.,  were  also  presenters.  There  are  also  a  few  articles  from 
private  donors,  among  which  are  two  plates,  presented  one  by  a 
Mrs.  Mary  Leaver,  and  the  other  by  the  Rev.  Henry  Barclay,  a 
former  rector  of  the  parish. 

Trinity  is  the  parish-church  of  the  parish  of  that  name,  which 
includes  also,  at  the  present  date,  St.  Paul's  and  St.  John's 
chapels,  the  former  erected  in  1766,  and  the  latter  in  1807. 
From  the  years  1752  to  1811,  St.  George's  church  in  Beekman 
Street  was  a  chapel  of  the  parish.  The  three  congregations  of 
Trinity  church  and  its  chapels  formed,  for  all  parochial  purposes 
and  in  reference  to  pastoral  oversight,  but  one ;  and  the  rector 
and  ministers  officiated  in  the  church  and  chapels  in  rotation 
until  the  year  1836,  when,  by  an  enactment  of  the  vestry,  the 
assistant  ministers  had  each  assigned  to  him  a  particular  church, 
in  which  he  was  regularly  to  perform  the  morning  services  on 
Sundays  and  holydays,  and  whose  congregation  was  to  be  con- 
sidered as  under  his  individual  pastoral  charge  :  the  exchanges, 
therefore,  which  were  formerly  made  promiscuously,  were  con- 
fined thereafter  exclusively  to  Sunday  evenings. 

The  churchwardens  and  vestrymen  of  the  parish  are  chosen 
by  ballot  from  the  three  congregations,  without  distinction,  on 
every  Tuesday  in  Easter  week ;  and  pew-holders  and  members 
of  the  congregation,  being  communicants,  are  electors.  The 
rector  of  the  parish,  or,  in  his  absence,  his  assistant,  if  he  have 
one,  is  the  president,  and  the  only  clerical  member  of  that  body, 
and  sustains,  in  reference  to  parochial  duty  and  public  adminis- 
trations, an  equal  connexion  with  all  three  congregations.  Di- 
vine service  is  uniformly  celebrated  in  the  parish,  not  only  at 
the  usual  hours  on  Sunday,  but  also  on  the  morning  of  every 
Wednesday  and  Friday,  and  of  every  festival  and  holyday  of  the 
Christian  Church. 

The  present  rector  is  the  eighth  that  has  held  that  office.  The 
succession  is  as  follows : — 

William  Vesey        ....         from  1696  to  1746 
Henry  Barclay,  D.D.      ...  "     1746  "  1764 

Samuel  Auchmuty,  D.D.         -         -  "     1764  «  1777 


476  APPENDIX. 

Charles  Inglis,  D.D.        -         -         -  from  1777  to  1783 

Samuel  Provoost,  D.D.  bishop           -  "     1783  "  1800 

Benjamin  Moore,  D.D.  bishop           -  "     1800"   1816 

John  Henry  Hobart,  D.D.  bishop     -  "     1816  "  1830 

William  Berrian              ...  «     1830 

Of  the  above,  Dr.  Inglis,  after  leaving  Trinity  parish,  became 
Bishop  of  Nova  Scotia,  and  all  except  Mr.  Vesey  and  Dr.  Bar- 
clay were  previously  assistant-ministers ;  in  addition  to  whom, 
besides  the  present  incumbents,  the  following  gentlemen  have  at 
different  times  held  that  office  : — John  Ogilvie,  D.D. ;  John  Bow- 
den,  D.D.;  Abraham  Beach,  D.D.  ;  John  Bisset ;  Cave  Jones  ; 
Thomas  Y.  How,  D.D. ;  Thomas  C.  Brownell,  D.D.,  LL.D. 
(now  Bishop  of  Connecticut)  ;  Benjamin  T.  Onderdonk,  D.D. 
(now  Bishop  of  New  York)  ;  John  F.  Schroeder,  D.D. ;  and 
Henry  Anthon,  D.D. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  the  present  clergy  and  vestry  of  the 
parish  : — 

Rector  : 
William  Berrian,  D.D. 

Assistant  Ministers  : 
Jonathan  M.  Wainwright,  D.D. 
Edward  Y.  Higbee,  D.D 
One  vacancy. 

Churchwardens  : 
Thomas  L.  Ogden  Adam  Tredwell. 

Vestrymen  : 

Teunis  Quick  Henry  Cotheal 

Jonathan  H.  Lawrence  John  D.  Wolfe 

Edward  W.  Laight  Thomas  L.  Clark 

Peter  A.  Mesier  William  Moore 

Anthony  L.  Underhill  William  H.  Hobart 

William  Johnson  Henry  Youngs 

Philip  Hone  Alexander  L.  McDonald 

William  E.  Dunscomb  Samuel  G.  Raymond 

William  H.  Harrison  Gulian  C.  Verplanck 

Robert  Hyslop  Philip  Henry. 


APPENDIX.  477 


No.  II. 


To  the  reader  who  may  possess  any  desire  to  learn  the  result 
of  my  application  for  admission  to  the  English  Church,  the  cir- 
cumstances attending  it  may  perhaps  afford  sufficient  interest  to 
warrant  my  appending  them  to  my  American  journal. 

Having  been  furnished  by  Dr.  C r  with  a  letter  explana- 
tory and  recommendatory  to  the  Bishop  of  London,  I  forwarded 
the  same,  accompanied  by  Bishop  Griswold's  Dimissory,  to  his 
lordship,  who  gave  me  an  interview  at  Fulham  on  New  Year's 
Day  ;  when  he  told  me  that  the  then  statute  of  the  26th  of  George 
III.  (which  he  read  to  me)  was  fatal  to  my  plans,  unless  the  spe- 
cial consent  of  the  primate  could  be  obtained  for  a  dispensation  in 
my  favour,  which  he  discouraged  my  expecting.  Dr.  Lushing- 
ton,  he  said,  had  recorded  a  formal  protest  against  the  legality  of 
Mr.  Winslowe's  ordination  to  the  priesthood,  and  the  title  by 
which  he  held  his  cure.  It  was  in  contemplation,  the  bishop 
added,  to  obtain  the  enactment  of  a  new  statute,  which  would  put 
American  ordained  clergymen  on  a  different  footing  in  England ; 
the  provisions  of  this  Act  would  make  no  distinction  between 
bishops,  priests,  or  deacons.  His  lordship,  therefore,  recom- 
mended me  "  at  all  events,"  to  obtain  my  full  orders  in  America, 
— and  I  acted  on  his  recommendation. 

Before,  however,  returning  to  the  United  States,  a  clerical 
friend  and  neighbour  of  my  father's  volunteered  to  assist  in  ob- 
taining for  me  my  desired  object ;  and  kindly  enlisted  Archdea- 
oon  Lear  and  his  diocesan  (Bishop  Denison)  in  my  cause.  The 
latter  made  an  application  to  the  Archbishop  for  the  legal  dispen- 
sation, which  was  courteously  refused  on  the  ground, — 1st,  that 
none  had  been  yet  granted  under  the  Act  of  Geo.  III.  cap.  xxvi ; 
and  2ndly,  that  the  newly  framed  statute,  intending  to  apply  to 
similar  cases,  was  shortly  to  become  law.  Finding,  therefore, 
all  prospect  of  an  early  change  of  ecclesiastical  relationship  hope- 
less, I  prepared  to  return  to  America,  when  accidentally  meeting 
my  true-hearted  friend  in  London,  he  determined  on  making  an- 
other effort  in  my  behalf  by  a  personal  appeal  to  the  primate, 
who  gave  him  an  interview  at  Lambeth,  when,  admitting  my 
"case"  to  be  a  "hard  one,"  he  repeated  his  refusal  to  depart 
from  the  rule  he  had  laid  down,  and  I  returned  to  Wiltshire  to 


478  APPENDIX. 

take  leave  of  my  friends.  Here  a  letter  followed  me  from  a  gen- 
tleman ecclesiastically  connected  with  the  Newfoundland  mis- 
sion, whose  acquaintance  (one  of  the  most  delightful  I  have  ever 
formed)  had  commenced  under  the  paternal  roof  during  the  pre- 
vious winter  : — 

"  4  Exeter  Hall,  May  Z\st,  1838. 

"  My  dear  sir, 

"Although  I  was  aware  that  you  left  town  with  the  intention 
of  proceeding  to  the  United  States,  yet  I  cannot  resist  the  impulse 
to  write  to  you,  which  I  feel  produced  by  the  impression  that  you 
determined  to  take  that  course,  from  the  conviction  that  no  door 
of  usefulness  could  be  opened  to  you  here,  in  your  native  land ; 
and  at  the  request  of  a  friend  who  has  desired  me  to  make  you 
acquainted  with  a  vacancy,  which  from  my  description  he  thinks 
you  could  and  would  like  to  fill. 

"  Mr.  D s  has  built  a  church,  and  I  believe  endowed  it 

with  £1000,  in  N d,  M x,  which  he  hopes  to  get  licensed 

and  consecrated ;  in  this  he  is  disappointed,  and  will  not  allow  it 
to  be  occupied  by  a  dissenting  minister,  but  would  give  it  to  a 
person  circumstanced  like  yourself,  willing  to  conform  to  Episco- 
pal orders,  so  far  as  you  are  permitted  by  the  higher  powers : 
that  is,  in  all  things  in  which  the  law  at  present  will  allow  you 
to  comply  with  its  requisitions.  I  believe  this  is  your  case. 
*  *  *  # 

"  Having  given  you  this  hasty  and  rough  outline,  I  will  add 
the  address  of  the  patron  of  the  church,  who  expects  to  hear  from, 
or  see  you  ;  he  has  desired  me  to  say  there  is  a  bed  at  his  house 
for  you,  and  he  would  wish  you  to  see  the  place  and  church.  It 
is  but  four  or  five  miles  from  town. 

"  May  the  great  Head  of  the  Church  guide  and  bless  you  for 
his  own  glory  and  the  increase  of  his  kingdom. 

"  Will  you  present  my  Christian  respects  to  your  family,  who, 
I  hope,  are  all  well. 

"  I  am,  my  dear  Sir,  in  haste, 

"  Yours  faithfully, 

"M-K    W Y." 

I  responded  to  the  suggestion  contained  in  this  letter  by  making 
a  visit  to  N d  ;  but  the  uncanonical  and  somewhat  anomalous 


APPENDIX.  479 

position  in  which  the  proposed  relationship  would  place  me,  both 
towards  the  regular  ecclesiastical  authorities  and  the  parish  in 

which  Mr.  D 's  church  was  built,  presented  to  both  of  us, 

when  the  matter  came  to  be  discussed,  insuperable  difficulties  to 
a  pastoral  connection  with  the  latter,  and  after  a  visit  to  Wales 
and  the  Isle  of  Wight  I  sailed  for  New  York. 

This  voyage  to  England,  though  resulting  unsuccessfully  in 
my  own  individual  case,  fully  tested  the  impracticability  of  get- 
ting Church  preferment  in  England  with  foreign  orders,  and  had 
the  effect  of  deterring  more  than  one  from  making  a  similar  at- 
tempt. The  disappointment  was  in  a  great  measure  counterbal- 
anced by  the  high  gratification  I  received  in  the  intercourse  of 
numerous  friends  who  took  a  lively  interest  in  my  case ;  nor  can 
I  forbear  recording  that  of  an  esteemed  clergyman,  whose  pas- 
toral tutorage  and  sound  instructions  had  first  sown  in  early  youth 
the  seeds  of  that  preference  for  the  order  and  worship  of  the 
Church  which  had  ripened  to  maturity  in  a  foreign  land.  In  this 
work  of  education  my  excellent  tutor  was  ably  assisted,  particu- 
larly in  the  biblical  studies  of  the  pupils  (nearly  all  of  whom  are 
now  in  holy  orders),  by  his  accomplished  lady;  whose  writings, 
adapted  so  admirably  to  the  juvenile  capacity,  have  diffused  the 
sweet  fragrance  of  their  sanctity,  like  blossoms  and  flowers  of 
Eden,  into  many  families  of  our  isle.  The  pen  would  fain  trans- 
cribe several  souvenirs  from  this  quarter,  did  not  delicacy  forbid ; 
but  the  following,  so  well  calculated  to  assist  in  lightening  the 
heart  when  the  widening  distance  from  England's  ocean-bound 
shores  widened  the  separation  from  home  and  friends,  is,  I  hope, 
not  improperly  or  inappropriately  inserted  : — 

"R y,  A 29th,  1838. 

"  My  dear  friend, 
"  Your  communication  by  this  post  conveys  to  us  two  streams 
of  feeling,  the  one  of  pleasure,  the  other  of  regret :  the  latter, 
that  of  not  being  allowed  to  meet  ere  your  return  to  America  ; 
the  former,  the  consideration  of  that  vital  principle  of  godliness 
which  will,  I  rest  assured,  spring  up  as  a  well  in  your  soul  unto 
eternal  life.  Blessed  be  our  God,  the  streams  from  the  smitten 
rock  in  the  wilderness  will  follow  us  all  the  way;  and  though 
it  must  for  our  benefit  sometimes  have  the  bitter  wood  thrown 
into  it,  yet  it  will  flow  to  refresh   us  all  our  journey,  till  Jor- 


480  APPENDIX. 

dan's  stream  itself  divides  to  let  us  pass  over  unto  the  prom- 
ised 

'  land  of  pure  delight 


Where  saints  immortal  reign.' 

'  Sweet  fields  beyond  the  swelling  flood 
Stand  dressed  in  living  green.' 

"  Again  assure  your  dear  sister  she  will  share  our  prayers 
with  you  for  the  abundant  blessing  of  the  Lord  to  rest  upon  each 
of  you.  Tell  her  I  send  to  her,  with  my  Christian  love,  the  lit- 
tle book  entitled  'Extracts  from  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Gutzlaff's  Letters.' 
I  knew  Mrs.  G.  previously  to  her  going  out,  and  have  put  the 
extracts  together  for  the  use  and  encouragement  of  missionaries. 
She  was  a  self-denying  missionary,  going  out  alone  ;  and,  on  her 
own  account,  giving  herself  and  her  property  to  the  service  of 
the  Lord  in  foreign  climes ;  and  it  prospers  in  and  through  her 
labours. 


But  I  find  God  has  and  does  not  only  honour  me  by  tokens  of 
making  my  weak  labours  useful,  but  he  blesses  me  through  them 
in  enabling  me  to  open  my  purse  wider  than  I  could  otherwise  do 

for  the  use  of  the  poor  around  us.     Mr.  M k  will  write  to 

you  himself. 

"  With  my  kindest  regard  to  your  parents  and  family,  and 
every  good  wishes  for  a  safe  voyage,  believe  me  to  remain, 
"  Your  very  sincere  friend, 

"E.  A.  M k." 

The  other  letter  referred  to,  closed  with  an  injunction  to  "  Re- 
member who  sits  at  the  helm,  and  guides  the  ship."  It  accom- 
panied a  volume  of  the  writer's  "  Plain  Sermons  on  Important 
Subjects  for  the  use  of  Seamen,"  whose  relative  value,  though 
great  to  the  author,  scarcely  exceeded  their  intrinsic  merit,  as  ad- 
mirably designed  for  persons  of  the  nautical  profession.  Their 
perusal  delightfully  employed  many  a  leisure  hour  during  the 
monotonous  period  of  a  steam-passage.  I  am  fain  to  add  to  this 
narration  and  record,  two  other  documents :  one  a  characteristic 
missive  from  my  Rhode  Island  friend,  under  whose  instructions  I 
had  prosecuted  my  theological  studies,  received  a  few  days  after 
our  arrival  at  New  York ;  and  the  other,  the  first  renewal  of  a 


APPENDIX.  481 

most  valued  correspondence  with  the  good  vicar  of  Salisbury 
Plain,  received  after  my  settlement  at  York  : — 

"P e,  ,  1838. 

"  My  very  dear  sir, 

"  I  had  like  to  have  said  son ;  doubtless,  because  I  have  felt 
for  you  so  long  the  solicitude  of  a  father.  A  thrill  of  pleasure 
came  over  me  when  your  arrival  was  announced,  and  I  shall  be 
exceedingly  glad  to  see  you  and  your  self-sacrificing  sister  in 
Providence.  A  sacrifice,  indeed,  it  must  be  to  follow  your  for- 
tunes and  share  in  your  labours.  I  was  in  New  York  several 
days  after  the  arrival  of  the  Great  Western.  How  glad  would 
have  been  our  meeting !  *  *  Your  mother's  letter,  like 
all  I  have  seen  from  her  practised  pen,  was  delightful.  I  owe 
her  much  ;  and  am  absolutely  ashamed  that  no  letter  has  reached 
her  or  yourself  during  your  absence.  My  only  apology  is,  per- 
haps, a  poor  one.  *  *  Your  little  parish  is  sup- 
plied at  present ;  and  should  you  wish  to  take  some  other  one  in 
Rhode  Island,  I  doubt  whether  we  have  a  church  to  offer  which 
would  meet  your  acceptance.  But,  at  any  rate,  I  hope  you  will 
make  us  a  visit.  We  know  not  what  may  transpire.  I  should 
be  glad  to  have  you  once  more  a  resident  of  this  State,  and  the 
rather  because  of  the  excellent  coadjutor  you  bring  with  you. 
Please  to  make  my  compliments  acceptable  to  her,  and  believe 
me 

"  Your  very  sincere  friend  and  brother, 

«N.  B.  C r." 


"  Vicarage,  T d,  J 13,  1839. 

"  My  dear  Waylen, 
"  I  am  truly  glad  to  hear  that  you  are  so  comfortably  settled 
in  communion  with  your  own  Church.  No  doubt  by  this  time 
you  have  received  your  priest's  orders  and  are  a  'full-dressed' 
clergyman.  Both  our  bishop  and  archdeacon  have  several  times 
inquired  after  you,  and  seemed  glad  to  hear  that  your  episcopal 
principles  had  prevented  you  from  joining  the  English  dissenters. 
His  lordship  regrets  very  much  the  position  in  which  both  he  and 
his  brethren  are  placed  in  respect  to  ordaining  American  cler- 
gymen. '  The  unity  of  the  Church,'  says  he,  '  is  thereby  sadly 
broken.' 

31 


482  APPENDIX. 

"  A  project  is  on  foot  for  the  more  direct  union  of  the  clergy 
here,  the  commencement  of  which  has  taken  place  in  our  diocese. 
We  agree  to  meet  our  archdeacon  in  parties  of  twenty  or  thirty, 
as  locality  permits,  at  stated  periods,  to  take  into  consideration 
public  measures  affecting  the  church  and  local  matters  concern- 
ing our  parishes.  By  which  arrangement,  when  completed,  the 
whole  clergy  of  the  kingdom  can  communicate  their  wishes  to  the 
bishops  on  any  subject  affecting  the  interests  of  our  commission 
in  a  few  days.  I  cannot  but  hope,  under  the  Divine  blessing, 
much  good  from  the  plan  both  to  ourselves  and  our  people. 

"  Mrs.  J n  and  I  often  speak  of  you,  and  wish  that  we 

could  enter  your  church  some  Sunday  and  witness  your  proceed- 
ings. I  shall  be  glad  to  hear  of  your  elevation  as  high  as  hon- 
ours and  degrees  can  do  so  ;  still  more,  that  your  congregation 
increases  in  grace  and  numbers. 

"  Mrs.  J.  requests  me  to  beg  the  favour,  if  such  creatures  are 
to  be  found  (which  I  doubt)  in  your  part  of  America,  of  a  hum- 
ming bird  or  two,  when  your  convenience  will  allow  you  to  send 
them,  or  indeed  any  other  foreign  curiosity  that  may  be  rare 
here.  This  is  a  strange  request,  but,  as  in  duty  bound,  I  make 
it.  But  I  beg  you  will  not  put  yourself  to  much  expense  or 
trouble  in  such  matters. 

"  It  occurs  to  me  that  the  '  Ecclesiastical  Gazette '  will  be  ac- 
ceptable. I  will  from  time  to  time  forward  some  for  the  inform- 
ation of  your  American  friends.     I  send  all  I  have  by  me  with 

this  note  to  your  sisters  at  D s,  leaving  them  to  pack  them 

up.  This  will  give  them  an  opportunity  of  previously  looking 
them  over,  if  desirable. 

"  Believe  me, 

"  My  dear  Waylen, 

"Yours  truly, 

«j.  H.  J N." 


No.  III. 

AMERICAN    CHURCH    STATISTICS    BEYOND    THE    UNITED    STATES. 

Though  the  term  "American"  is  commonly  used  amongst  us 
to  designate  the  people  and  country  of  the  United  States,  the  rea- 


APPENDIX.  483 

der  is  reminded  that  the  Church  in  that  country  is  only  one 
branch  of  the  catholic  family  in  the  northern  continent  of  Amer- 
ica. In  the  vast  empire  of  British  North  America,  one-third 
larger  in  territory  than  the  United  States,  there  are  upwards  of 
two  hundred  thousand  members  of  the  Church  of  England,  under 
the  spiritual  care  of  five  bishops  and  three  hundred  clergy  (a 
most  inadequate  number),  with  a  theological  seminary  in  each 
diocess.  In  the  West  Indies — exclusive  of  Guiana,  which  is  a 
diocess  with  a  bishop — are  three  bishops  and  171  clergy.  It  is 
to  be  hoped  that  our  numerous  and  destitute  countrymen  in  Ore- 
gon, and  the  fertile  Vancouver,  will  also  soon  receive  the  benefits 
of  episcopal  supervision  and  missionary  instruction.  A  territory 
so  incalculably  valuable  from  its  geographical  position,  and  upon 
which  millions  of  British  money  have  been  expended  for  other 
purposes,  certainly  deserves  the  nursing  care  of  the  Church  at 
home ;  and  makes  a  louder  call  upon  the  committee  for  endowing 
colonial  bishoprics  than  others  which  have  lately  received  the 
preference.  It  is  impossible  for  the  Bishop  of  Toronto,  whose 
visitations  already  extend  north  and  west  of  Lake  Superior,  to 
cross  the  Rocky  Mountains.  The  United  States  will  soon  send 
a  bishop  to  the  south  of  the  wide  valley  beyond ;  and  is  the  vast 
territory  northward,  covered  with  our  forts  and  storehouses,  in- 
habited by  thousands  of  British  subjects  and  the  friendly  tribes 
of  red  men,  to  lift  up  its  hands  in  vain  for  want  of  spiritual  over* 
sight  ?     Let  British  Christians  make  the  response  ! 

[The  importance — nay,  the  coming  necessity — of  a  highway 
across  the  continent,  requiring  a  navigable  outlet,  seems  wholly 
hid  (by  some  extraordinary  obliquity  of  vision)  from  a  great  por- 
tion of  the  English  nation,  to  whom  it  is  chiejly  valuable.  The 
politicians  of  the  United  States  are,  however,  fully  alive  to  its  ad- 
vantages, and  are  adopting  a  stratagem,  which,  however  despe- 
rate the  risk  they  run,  is  deemed  necessary  to  secure  the  only 
thing  that  makes  Oregon,  as  a  colonial  possession,  worth  the 
trouble  of  negotiation  to  Britain ;  and  are  we  prepared,  by  a  vol- 
untary and  uncalled-for  relinquishment  of  our  share  of  this  ad- 
vantage, to  surrender  to  the  United  States  the  exclusive  monopoly 
in  an  immense  carrying  trade  ?  and  to  be  indebted  to  them  (as 
we  now  are  to  Mehemet  Ali)  for  the  shortest,  and  ere  long  the 
only,  passage  to  and  from  China,  and  our  Indian  and  Australian 
possessions  ?      After    expending    incredible    sums   on    two   ship 


484  APPENDIX. 

canals  to  secure  a  river  and  lake  navigation  for  nearly  one-half 
of  the  distance,  and,  by  a  long  course  of  liberal  expenditure  and 
honourable  dealing,  having  secured  the  friendly  alliance  of  the 
Indians  throughout  the  west  of  America,  will  any  British  minister 
in  his  senses  dare  to  sacrifice  so  much  of  the  future  interests  of 
the  British  crown,  and  to  cut  off  our  great  and  rising  colony  of 
Canada  from  the  only  means  of  competing  with  her  southern 
neighbour  in  manufactures  and  exports  ?  Better  assist  the  States 
in  honourably  acquiring  California  (a  compromise  they  would  wil- 
lingly accept),  which  by  the  natural  laws  of  accretion  they  must 
ultimately  possess,  and  which  the  imbecile  Mexican  is  unable  to 
improve,  than  relinquish  the  navigation,  in  perpetuity,  of  the 
Columbia,  or  a  foot  of  territory  north  of  it.  This  arrangement 
will  secure  to  the  United  States  two  important  outlets,  besides 
their  share  of  the  Columbia  (to  which  they  have  honestly  no 
claim  at  all),  and  in  the  Bay  of  St.  Francisco,  the  finest  port 
and  harbour,  without  dispute,  in  the  world.  It  will  do  more — it 
will  allay  the  national  jealousies  and  mutual  apprehensions  rela- 
tive to  the  now  unoccupied  provinces  of  New  Mexico,  and  recon- 
cile all  American  parties  :  thus  guarding  against  the  recurrence 
of  any  possible  misunderstanding  between  the  two  countries. 
The  speedy  settlement  of  this  question  rests  with  Lord  Aberdeen. 
A  skilful  agent  at  Mexico  city,  acquainted  with  the  ground,  could 
effect  a  treaty  advantageous  and  satisfactory  to  each  of  the  three 
parties  concerned.  I  feel  warranted  also  (from  living  near  the 
seat  of  government,  and  frequent  intercourse  with  official  persons) 
in  adding,  that  Mr.  Pakenham,  if  invested  with  full  powers  and 
untrammelled  in  the  exercise  of  them,  could  do  the  same.  No 
one  can  now  suppose  that  the  United  States  has  had,  from  the 
commencement  of  the  Oregon  dispute,  any  expectation  of  a  war. 

In  Russian  America  there  are  about  a  thousand  members  of 
the  Russian  Church  among  the  whites,  besides  Indian  converts. 
The  Indians  number  50,000.  A  bishop  resides  here,  whose  la- 
bours and  zeal  for  the  spiritual  interests  of  his  flock  formed  the 
subject  of  a  high  panegyric  in  a  late  number  of  a  Philadelphia 
Church  Journal,  which  I  have  mislaid.  He  is  assisted  by  itine- 
rating priests  and  sub-officials. 

The  Mexican  Church,  it  is  no  information  to  the  reader  to  men- 
tion, is  still  under  the  papal  yoke.  The  following  account  of  the 
consecration  of  its  present  primate,  Senor  Posada,  Archbishop  of 


APPENDIX.  485 

Mexico,  from  Madame  de  la  Barca's  interesting  journal  of  a  resi- 
dence in  Mexico,  may  interest  a  portion  of  my  readers.  The 
detail  of  the  preparations  describes  the  old  Bishop  of  Linares  as 
presiding  on  the  occasion,  assisted  by  two  younger  brethren  of 
the  episcopal  bench  ;  and  General  Bustamente,  the  then  president 
of  the  republic,  acting  as  " padrino,"  or  god-father  to  the  arch- 
bishop elect.  The  ceremony  occupied  three  hours.  The  can- 
dlesticks and  the  basins  for  holy  water  were  pure  gold,  and  the 
vestments,  &c.  of  "the  most  elaborate  and  costly  description." 

"  Magnificent  chairs  were  prepared  for  the  bishops  near  the 
altar,  and  the  president,  in  uniform,  took  his  seat  among  them. 
The  presiding  bishop  took  his  place  alone,  with  his  back  to  the 
altar,  and  the  Senor  Posada  was  led  in  by  the  assisting  bishops ; 
they  with  their  mitres,  he  with  his  priest's  cap,  on.  Arrived  be- 
fore the  presiding  bishop,  he  uncovered  his  head  and  made  a  pro- 
found obeisance.  These  three  then  took  their  seats  on  chairs 
placed  in  front.  After  a  short  pause  they  arose,  again  uncovered 
their  heads,  and  the  bishop  Moralez,  turning  to  the  presiding 
bishop,  said,  '  Most  reverend  father,  the  Holy  Catholic  Mother 
Church  requests  you  to  raise  this  presbyter  to  the  charge  of  the 
archiepiscopate. 

"  '  Have  you  an  apostolical  mandate  V 

"  '  We  have.' 

"  <  Read  it.' 

"  An  assistant-priest  then  read  the  mandate  in  a  loud  voice ; 
upon  which  they  all  sat  down,  the  consecrator  saying,  '  Thanks 
be  to  God.'  Then  Posada,  kneeling  before  him,  took  an  oath 
upon  the  Bible,  which  the  bishop  held,  concluding  with  these 
words,  'So  may  God  help  me  and  these,  his  Holy  Gospels.' 
Then,  all  sitting  down,  and  resuming  their  mitres,  the  examina- 
tion of  the  future  archbishop  took  place.  It  was  very  long,  and 
at  its  conclusion  Posada  knelt  before  the  presiding  bishop  and 
kissed  his  hand.  To  this  succeeded  the  confession  ;  every  one 
standing  uncovered  before  the  altar,  which  was  then  sprinkled 
with  incense.     Then  followed  the  mass  chaunted. 

"Led  from  the  cathedral  by  the  assistant- bishops,  Posada  was 
clothed  with  the  episcopal  robes,  and  read  the  service  of  the  mass 
before  the  altar.  Again  brought  before  the  consecrator,  he  salu- 
ted him  with  reverence,  and  sat  whilst  the  presiding  bishop  de- 
clared to  him  the  duties  of  the  episcopal  office.     Again  they  all 


486  APPENDIX. 

rose,  and  the  consecrator  prayed  for  God's  blessing  on  the  newly- 
elected  primate.  Prostrate  before  the  altar,  they  all  listened  to 
the  singing  of  the  Litanies.  These  ended,  the  presiding  prelate, 
taking  the  crosier  in  his  hand,  prayed  three  times  that  grace 
might  abound  in  the  chosen  one,  each  time  signing  him  with  the 
symbol  of  the  cross.  Posada  alone  now  knelt,  the  rest  sat  on 
their  episcopal  chairs. 

"  The  Bible  was  then  placed  on  his  shoulders,  while  he  re- 
mained prostrate ;  the  bishop,  rising  up,  pronounced  a  solemn 
benediction  on  him,  while  the  hymn  of  Veni  Creator  was  sung  in 
full  choir.  Then  dipping  his  hand  in  the  holy  chrism,  the  bishop 
anointed  the  primate's  head,  making  on  it  the  sign  of  the  cross, 
and  saying,  '  Let  thy  head  be  anointed  and  consecrated  with  the 
celestial  benediction,  according  to  the  pontifical  mandate.'  The 
bishop  then  anointed  his  hands,  making  in  the  same  manner  the 
sign  of  the  cross,  and  saying,  '  May  these  hands  be  anointed  with 
holy  oil ;  and  as  Samuel  anointed  David  a  king  and  a  prophet,  so 
be  thou  anointed  and  consecrated.'  This  was  followed  by  a 
solemn  prayer.  Then  the  crosier  was  blessed,  and  presented  to 
the  elected  archbishop,  with  these  words,  '  Receive  the  pastoral 
crosier,  that  thou  mayest  be  humanely  severe  in  correcting  vices, 
exercising  judgment  without  wrath.'  The  blessing  of  the  ring 
followed,  with  solemn  prayer,  and,  being  sprinkled  with  holy 
water,  it  was  placed  on  the  third  finger  of  the  right  hand,  the 
bishop  saying,  '  Receive  the  ring,  which  is  a  sign  of  faith  ;  that, 
adorned  with  incorruptible  faith,  thou  mayest  guard  inviolably 
the  spouse  of  God,  his  holy  Church.' 

"  The  volume  of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  which  during  these  last 
ceremonies  had  remained  on  the  shoulders  of  the  kneeling  pre- 
late, was  then  removed  and  presented  to  him,  with  an  injunction 
to  receive  and  preach  the  Gospel.  The  kiss  of  peace  was  then 
bestowed,  and  Posada  retired  to  his  ablutions  ;  after  these  he  re- 
turned, bearing  two  lighted  tapers,  which,  with  two  small  loaves 
and  barrels  of  wine,  he  presented  to  the  consecrator  in  a  reve- 
rential attitude.  The  presiding  prelate  then  washed  his  hands, 
mounted  the  altar-steps,  and  administered  the  sacrament  to  the 
primate  elect. 

"  The  mitre  was  then  blessed  and  placed  upon  his  head,  with 
a  prayer  from  the  bishop,  that  thus,  with  his  head  armed  and  with 
the  staff  of  the  Gospels,  he  might  appear  terrible  to  the  adversa- 


APPENDIX.  487 

ries  of  the  true  faith.  The  gloves  were  next  consecrated  and 
drawn  on  his  hands,  the  bishop  praying  '  that  his  hands  might  be 
surrounded  by  the  purity  of  the  new  man  ;  and  that  as  Jacob, 
when  he  covered  his  hands  with  goats'  skins,  offered  agreeable 
meats  to  his  father,  and  received  his  paternal  benediction,  so  he. 
in  offering  the  Holy  Sacrament,  might  obtain  the  benediction  of 
his  Heavenly  Father.'  The  archbishop  was  then  seated  by  the 
consecrating  prelate  on  his  pontifical  throne,  and  at  the  same  time 
the  hymn  Te  Deum  laudamus  was  chaunted.  During  the  hymn, 
the  bishops,  with  their  jewelled  mitres,  rose,  and,  passing  through 
the  church,  blessed  the  whole  congregation,  the  new  archbishop 
still  remaining  near  the  altar,  and  with  his  mitre.  When  he  re- 
turned to  his  seat,  the  assistant-bishops,  including  the  consecrator, 
remained  standing  till  the  hymn  was  concluded.  The  presiding 
bishop  then,  advancing  with  his  mitre  to  the  right  hand  of  the 
archbishop,  said,  '  May  thy  hand  be  strengthened.  May  thy 
right  hand  be  exalted.  May  justice  and  judgment  be  the  prepa- 
ration of  thy  see !'  Then  the  organ  pealed  forth,  and  they 
chaunted  the  hymn  of  Gloria  Patri.  Long  and  solemn  prayer 
followed,  and  then  they  all,  uncovered,  stood  beside  the  Gospels, 
at  the  altar.  The  archbishop  rose,  and,  with  the  mitre  and  cro- 
sier, pronounced  a  solemn  blessing  on  all  the  people  assembled. 
Then,  while  all  knelt  beside  the  altar,  he  said  'for  many  years.' 
This  he  repeated  three  several  times ;  the  second  time  in  the 
middle  of  the  altar,  the  third  time  at  the  feet  of  the  presiding 
bishop. 

"  And  then  bestowing  the  kiss  of  peace  on  each  of  his  episco- 
pal brethren,  the  new  primate  concluded  the  long  and  interesting 
ceremonies  of  the  consecration."] 


No.  IV. 

INSTITUTIONS    CREATED    BY    THE    GENERAL    CONVENTION. 


THE    GENERAL    THEOLOGICAL    SEMINARY,    NEW    YORK. 

Trustees. — All  the  bishops  of  the  American  Church,  one  trus- 
tee from  each  diocess,  one  additional  for  every  eight  clergymen, 


488  APPENDIX. 

one  more  additional  for  every  two  thousand  dollars  contributed, 
until  the  same  amounts  to  ten  thousand  dollars,  and  one  for  every 
additional  ten  thousand  contributed. 

Treasurer. — W.  H.  Harison,  Esq.,  New  York. 

Secretary. — The  Rev.  E.  Y.  Higbee,  D.D.,  New  York. 

The  Standing  Committee. — All  the  bishops,  the  secretary  and 
the  treasurer,  together  with  an  equal  number  of  clergymen  and 
laymen. 

Professorships. — Nature,  Ministry,  and  Polity  of  the  Church  ; 
Biblical  Learning  and  the  Interpretation  of  Scripture  ;  Systematic 
Divinity  ;  Oriental  and  Greek  Literature  ;  "  St.  Mark's  Church 
in  the  Bowery,"  Professorship  of  Ecclesiastical  History  ;  Pastoral 
Theology  and  Pulpit  Eloquence. 

Students  in  1844,  about  70.     Volumes  in  the  library,  7500. 

The  seminary  opens  on  the  first  Monday  in  October,  and  closes 
on  the  Saturday  next  succeeding  the  fourth  Tuesday  in  June. 


THE    DOMESTIC    AND    FOREIGN    MISSIONARY    SOCIETY. 

The  Board  of  Missions. — All  the  bishops  of  the  American 
Church,  thirty  members  elected  by  the  General  Convention,  the 
elected  members  of  the  two  committees  below,  and  such  persons 
as  were  patrons  of  the  society  in  1829.  Secretary :  The  Rev.  P. 
Van  Pelt,  Philadelphia. 

Domestic  Committee  of  the  Board. — All  the  bishops,  with  four 
clergymen  and  four  laymen.  A  secretary  and  treasurer.  The 
latter  office  is  well  filled  by  Thomas  N.  Standard,  Esq.,  one  of 
the  worthiest  men  in  the  country. 

Foreign  Committee  of  the  Board. — All  the  bishops,  with  four 
clergymen  and  four  laymen. 

In  the  Domestic  Department ;  two  missionary  bishops  and 
ninety-four  missionaries.  Receipts,  June  1843  to  June  1844, 
28,266  dollars.     Expenditures,  34,182  dollars. 

In  the  Foreign  Department ;  two  bishops,  twelve  missionaries 
and  twenty  assistants.  Receipts,  June  1843  to  June  1844,  31,032 
dollars.     Expenditures,  29,045  dollars. 

Official  Organ. — "  The  Spirit  of  Missions,"  20  John  Street, 
New  York. 

The  stations  and  missionaries  are  as  follows : — 


APPENDIX.  489 

Greece. — The  station  at  Athens,  under  the  Rev.  John  Hill  : 
patronised  and  encouraged  by  the  king,  and  the  excellent  Bres- 
thenes,  Bishop  of  Sellucia  and  Metropolitan  of  the  Greek  Church. 
There  are  two  other  missionaries  in  holy  orders,  and  four  ladies ; 
at  the  head  of  the  latter,  Mrs.  Hill  is  indefatigable  in  her  efforts 
in  the  cause  of  female  education. 

The  African  Mission. — At  Liberia  and  Cape  Palmas  are 
two  missionary  priests,  and  four  female  teachers,  with  cate- 
chists,  die. 

Coma. — Bishop  Boone,  and  five  clergymen  ;  catechists. 

Turkey. — Bishop  Southgate,  and  two  missionaries. 


THE    CHURCH    SUNDAY-SCHOOL    UNION. 

Board  of  Managers. — All  the  bishops,  and  sixty  members, 
elected  triennially  by  the  society,  together  with  a  secretary  and 
treasurer. 

Executive  Committee. — All  the  bishops,  with  seven  clergymen 
and  five  laymen  ;  a  secretary,  and  editor  of  the  "  Children's 
Magazine  ;"  a  "general  editor  and  agent." 

The  Church  Sunday-School  Union  publishes  books  of  instruc- 
tion and  library  books  for  Sunday-schools,  the  "  Children's  Maga- 
zine," and  other  periodicals. 


No.  V. 

CANONS    PASSED    IN  1844. 


Of  a  Discretion  to  be  allowed  in  the  Calling,  Trial,  and  Examina- 
tion of  Deacons  in  certain  cases. 

Section  1.  It  shall  be  lawful  for  any  bishop,  upon  being  re- 
quested so  to  do  by  a  Resolution  of  the  Convention  of  his  diocess, 
to  admit  to  the  holy  order  of  deacons  persons  not  tried  and  exam- 
ined as  prescribed  in  the  canons  "Of  Candidates  for  Orders," 
"Of  the  Learning  of  those  who  are  to  be  Ordained,"  and  "Of 


490  APPENDIX. 

the  Preparatory  Exercises  of  a  Candidate  for  Deacon's  Orders," 
under  the  following  limitations  and  restrictions,  viz : — 

1.  Every  such  person  shall  have  attained  the  full  age  of 
twenty-four  years. 

2.  He  shall  have  presented  to  the  bishop  the  certificate  from 
the  Standing  Committee,  required  by  Section  2  of  the  canon 
"  Of  Candidates  for  Orders." 

3.  He  shall  have  remained  a  Candidate  for  Orders  at  least  one 
year  from  the  date  of  such  testimonials. 

4.  He  shall  have  presented  to  the  bishop  a  testimonial  from  at 
least  one  rector  of  a  parish,  signifying  a  belief  that  the  per- 
son so  applying  is  well  qualified  to  minister  in  the  office 
of  a  deacon  to  the  glory  of  God  and  the  edification  of  His 
Church. 

5.  He  shall  have  been  examined  by  the  bishop  and  at  least 
two  presbyters,  on  his  fitness  for  the  ministrations  declared 
in  the  Ordinal  to  appertain  to  the  office  of  a  deacon. 

Section  2.  A  deacon  ordained  under  this  canon  shall  not  be 
allowed  to  take  charge  of  a  parish. 

Section  3.  In  every  parish  in  which  a  deacon  ordained  under 
this  canon  shall  officiate,  he  shall  be  subject  to  the  direction  of 
the  rector  of  the  parish,  so  long  as  therein  resident,  and  officiating 
with  the  approbation  of  the  bishop. 

Section  4.  A  deacon  ordained  under  this  canon  shall  not  be 
transferable  to  another  diocess  without  the  request  of  the  bishop 
to  whom  he  is  to  be  transferred,  given  in  writing  to  the  bishop  to 
whose  jurisdiction  he  belongs. 

Section  5.  A  deacon  ordained  under  this  canon  shall  not  be 
entitled  to  a  seat  in  any  Convention,  nor  made  the  basis  of  any 
representation  in  the  management  of  the  concerns  of  the  Church. 

Section  6.  A  deacon  ordained  under  this  canon  shall  not  be 
ordained  to  the  priesthood  without  first  going  through  all  the  pre- 
paratory exercises  of  a  candidate  for  deacon's  orders,  as  required 
by  the  canon  thereto  relating,  in  addition  to  those  required  of  a 
candidate  for  priest's  orders,  nor  without  presenting  all  the  testi- 
monials required  by  the  canon  of  testimonials  to  be  produced  on 
the  part  of  those  who  are  to  be  ordained. 

Section  7.  In  all  respects  not  provided  for  by  this  canon,  the 
deacons  who  shall  be  ordained  under  it  shall  be  under  the  same 
direction  and  control  as  other  deacons. 


APPENDIX.  491 

Of  Foreign  Missionary  Bishops. 
Section  1.  The  House  of  Clerical  and  Lay  Deputies  may, 
from  time  to  time,  on  nomination  by  the  House  of  Bishops,  elect 
a  suitable  person  or  persons  to  be  a  bishop  or  bishops  of  this 
Church,  to  exercise  episcopal  functions  in  any  missionary  station 
or  stations  of  this  Church  out  of  the  territory  of  the  United  States, 
which  the  House  of  Bishops,  with  the  concurrence  of  the  House 
of  Clerical  and  Lay  Deputies,  may  have  designated.  The  evi- 
dence of  such  election  shall  be  a  certificate,  to  be  subscribed  by 
a  constitutional  majority  of  said  House  of  Clerical  and  Lay  Dep- 
uties, expressing  their  assent  to  the  said  nomination  ;  which  cer- 
tificate shall  be  produced  to  the  House  of  Bishops,  and  if  the 
House  of  Bishops  shall  consent  to  the  consecration,  they  may 
take  order  for  that  purpose. 

Section  2.  Any  bishop  elected  and  consecrated  under  this 
canon  to  exercise  episcopal  functions,  in  any  place  or  country 
which  may  have  been  thus  designated,  shall  have  no  jurisdiction 
except  in  the  place  or  country  for  which  he  has  been  elected  and 
consecrated.  He  shall  not  be  entitled  to  a  seat  in  the  House  of 
Bishops,  nor  shall  he  be  eligible  to  the  office  of  diocesan  bishop  in 
any  organised  diocess  within  the  United  States. 

Section  3.  Any  bishop  or  bishops  consecrated  under  this 
canon  shall,  on  presentment  by  two-thirds  of  the  missionaries 
under  his  charge  for  immorality  or  heresy,  or  for  a  violation 
of  the  constitution  or  canons  of  this  Church,  be  tried,  and,  if 
found  guilty,  punished,  in  all  particulars,  as  if  he  were  a  bishop 
of  this  Church  resident  within  the  limits  of  the  United  States. 

Section  4.  Any  bishop  or  bishops  elected  and  consecrated  un- 
der this  canon  may  ordain  as  deacons  or  presbyters,  to  officiate 
within  the  limits  of  their  respective  missions,  any  persons  of  the 
age  required  by  the  canons  of  this  Church,  who  shall  exhibit  to 
him  or  them  the  testimonials  required  by  Section  2  of  Canon  IX. 
of  1841,  signed  by  not  less  than  two  of  the  ordained  missionaries 
of  this  Church  who  may  be  subject  to  his  or  their  charge. 

Section  5.  Any  foreign  missionary  bishop,  consecrated  under 
this  canon,  may,  by  and  with  the  advice  of  any  three  missionary 
presbyters  under  his  charge,  at  his  discretion,  dispense  with  those 
studies  required  from  a  candidate  for  deacon's  orders  by  the 
canons  of  this  Church  ;  Provided  no  person  shall  be  ordained  by 
him  who  has  not  passed  a  satisfactory  examination,  in  the  pre- 


492  APPENDIX. 

sence  of  two  presbyters,  as  to  his  theological  learning  and  apti- 
tude to  teach.  And  provided  further,  that  no  person  shall  be  or- 
dained by  him  until  he  shall  have  been  a  candidate  for  at  least 
three  years.  Nor  shall  any  deacon  so  ordained  be  advanced  to 
the  order  of  presbyters,  who  has  not  been  in  deacon's  orders  for 
at  least  one  year.  Nor  shall  any  deacon  or  priest,  who  shall 
have  been  ordained  under  this  canon,  be  allowed  to  hold  any  cure, 
or  officiate  in  the  church  in  these  United  States,  until  he  shall 
have  complied  with  existing  canons  relating  to  the  learning  of 
persons  to  be  ordained. 

Section  6.  Any  foreign  missionary  bishop  or  bishops  elected 
and  consecrated  under  this  canon,  shall  have  jurisdiction  and 
government,  according  to  the  canons  of  this  Church,  over  all  mis- 
sionaries or  clergymen  of  this  Church  resident  in  the  district  or 
country  for  which  he  or  they  may  have  been  consecrated. 

Section  7.  Every  bishop  elected  and  consecrated  under  this 
canon  shall  report  to  each  General  Convention  his  proceedings 
and  acts,  and  the  state  of  the  mission  under  his  supervision.  He 
shall  also  make  a  similar  report,  at  least  once  every  year,  to  the 
Board  of  Missions  of  this  Church. 


No.  VI. 
"THE  holy  church,  throughout  all  the  world." 

As  the  word  Catholic  is,  through  the  modern  perversion  of  it, 
an  indefinite  term  to  the  apprehension  of  many  readers,  and  is 
still  applied  by  some  English  and  American  writers  and  public 
speakers  (in  the  plenitude  of  their  ignorance),  exclusively  to  the 
members  of  one  branch  of  the  Church  Universal, — notwithstand- 
ing that  the  different  branches  of  the  Church  throughout  the 
world  have  never  abandoned  the  appellation,  nor  conceded  it  for  a 
moment  to  the  sole  possession  of  the  Italian  branch  and  its  de- 
pendencies :  nevertheless,  as  this  ignorance  prevails  amongst  per- 
sons otherwise  intelligent,  and  a  Bishop  of  Norwich  is  found,  in 
the  nineteenth  century,  dishonest  enough  to  authenticate  the  false- 
hood on  the  platform  of  Exeter  Hall,  and  to  unchurch  his  own 


APPENDIX.  403 

communion,  the  following  table  from  the  United  States  "  Church 
Almanac,"  published  officially,  is  subjoined  to  these  addenda,  as 
showing  to  the  reader,  in  black  and  white  (by  an  authoritative 
document),  what  portions  of  the  Christian  communion  throughout 
the  world  are  recognised  by  that  apostolical  branch  of  the  Church 
in  the  United  States  as  lawfully  constituting  the  existing  Catholic 
Church,  which  was  planted  by  the  Apostles  in  "all  the  world." 
It  will  be  found  to  embrace  eleven-twelfths  of  the  nominally 
Christian  community  :  all  bound  together  by  the  tie  of  a  com- 
mon uninterrupted  apostolic  descent,  the  same  creed,  the  same 
episcopal  government,  and  the  same  three  orders  of  ministers.  It 
will  be  observed  that  this  table  does  not  include  Romanists,  i.  c. 
those  adherents  of  the  Roman  see  in  Britain  and  her  colonies,  or 
the  United  States,  Russia,  Sweden,  Asia,  &c,  who  are — either 
by  dissent  and  separation  from  the  national  Churches,  or  by  natu- 
ralization, without  conforming  to  them — in  a  state  of  recusancy, 
like  other  non-conforming  dissenters.  If  these  are  included  the 
proportion  will  be  larger. 

The  subjoined  table  (corrected,  as  far  as  I  have  the  means,  to 
this  date)  was  put  forth  by  the  "  Protestant  Episcopal  Tract  So- 
ciety," in  conformity,  I  presume,  with  a  declaration  of  the  House 
of  Bishops  in  their  Pastoral  of  1838  (prepared  by  Bishop  Gris- 
wold),  in  which  the  members  of  the  American  Church  are  re- 
minded by  their  spiritual  fathers  that,  though  small  in  number 
compared  with  the  aggregate  of  the  "  denominations  around  them, 
it  should  not  be  forgotten  that,  in  all  the  points  which  we  deem 
essential  to  Christianity,  we  agree  with  what  has  been  and  still  is 
held  by  far  the  greater  part  of  Christians  throughout  the  world." 
The  necessity,  as  English  and  American  Churchmen,  of  compre- 
hending the  Churches  under  the  papal  yoke,  where  they  legiti- 
mately exist — as  in  France,  Spain,  Portugal,  &c. — in  this  Catho- 
lic family  of  the  visible  Church  of  Christ,  is  shown  by  Mr. 
Palmer  in  his  "  Treatise  on  the  Church,"  dedicated,  by  permis- 
sion, to  the  primates  of  England  and  Ireland  ;  while  the  practice 
of  the  Church  of  England,  in  admitting  clergymen  of  the  Roman 
communion  to  our  altars,  without  re-ordination,  gives  the  lie  to 
those  "  false  prophets"  who  deny  our  younger  sister's*  claims. 

*  The  episcopal  Catholic  Church  of  England,  as  now  governed  and  constitu- 
ted, and  in  her  faith  and  doctrine,  is  nine  years  older  than  the  Church  of 
Rome. — See  Dkhop  Burgess,  and  the  honest  "  Roman  Callwlic"  writers. 


494  APPENDIX. 

The  unsound  doctrines,  arrogance,  and  uncatholic  exclusiveness 
of  that  Church,  lies  at  her  own  door,  and  dates  from  the  Council 
of  Trent.  We,  as  a  hranch  of  the  one  Catholic  Church, — re- 
cognised as  such  hy  a  Bishop  of  Rome  since  our  separation  from 
that  see — admitted  to  possess  valid  orders  by  the  most  learned 
writers  of  the  Roman  communion — we  lose  nothing  by  making 
such  a  charitable,  such  an  historically  correct  admission  on  be- 
half of  this  continental  communion.  Of  course,  I  do  not  include 
in  the  lawful  Church  of  Rome  the  Romanist  sect  of  this  island, 
to  which  Mr.  Newman  has  attached  himself,  the  schismatical 
position  of  which  is  the  more  sinful  as  it  is  taken  (on  the  part,  at 
least,  of  the  usurping  priesthood)  in  the  face  of  light  and  knoto- 
ledge ;  on  the  part  of  the  unhappy  clerical  apostates  a  sacrifice 
of  duty  and  conviction  to  sentiment  and  feeling.  It  is  due,  how- 
ever, to  these  lapsing  brethren  to  add,  that  a  morbid  sympathy  for 
the  unreformed  branch  of  the  Catholic  Church  under  papal  sway, 
is  not  confined  to  the  clerical  ranks  in  England.  The  readiness 
with  which  the  recent  fabrications  of  the  pretended  "Abbess  Ma- 
krena  Mieczyslawska,"  the  popish  Maria  Monk,  and  her  "  Basil- 
ian  nuns"  at  Minsk,  were  adopted  by  the  "  liberal"  part  of  the 
English  community  and  press,  and  the  commiseration  expressed 
for  the  fabled  "  martyrs,"  whose  supernatural  sufferings  and  in- 
credible feats  (better  suited  for  the  nursery  books  than  a  sober 
narrative)  are  still,  in  spite  of  their  full  refutation,  professedly 
credited  by  those  who  are  foremost  in  their  opposition  to  the 
Church  of  England  in  her  integrity  as  a  Catholic  communion,  af- 
fords a  mournful  illustration — either  of  an  increasing  preference 
for  the  Romish  Church,  amongst  the  laity  of  this  country,  or  of 
the  equally  dangerous  indifferentism  which  pervades  all  ranks  of 
politicians  and  nominal  "  protestants." 


APPENDIX. 


495 


Presby- 

i 

Churches. 

Bishops. 

ters  and 

deacons. 

I  1,600 

Laity. 

The  Church  of  England 

2  archbps.  25  bishops 

16,000,000 

Ireland 

2  archbps.  12  bishops 

1,964 

1,100,000 

British  India 

3  bishops 

229 

Australia 

1  bishop 

54 

Van  Dicman's  Land 

1  bishop 

22 

New  Zealand 

1  bishop 

18 

West  Indies 

3  bishops 

185 

British  North  America 

5  bishops 

300 

301,000 

Other  British  dependencies 

1  bishop 

19 

The  Church  of  Scotland 

1  primus,  5  bishops 

86 

The  Church  of  Rome 

States  of  the  Church 

1  pope,  67  bishops 

2,500,000 

Italy,  Sicily,  and  Corsica 

39  archbps.  265  bishops 

19,500,000 

Spain 

8  archbps.  47  bishops 

13,500,000 

Portugal 

2  archbps.  13  bishops 

3.700,000 

France 

15  archbps.  65  bishops 

35,934 

30,000,000 

Austria  beyond  Italy 

22,000,000 

Bavaria,    Belgium,    Cracow, 

] 

Prussian  Poland,  with  the 

European     countries     in 

y 

12,000,000 

which  the  established  re- 

ligion is  sectarian 

J 

South  America 

4  archbps.  25  bishops 

Mexico 

11,000,000 

Cuba 

1,000,000 

Porto  Rico 

195,000 

The  Church  of  Sweden 

1  archbp.  11  bishops 

3,500 

3,000,000 

"  Greek  Church"  or  Church  of 

Constantinople                    ^j 

Pontus 

Asia  Minor                            [ 

1  patriarch,  116  bishops 

Thrace                                J 

The  Church  of  Russia 

4  metropolitan,  34  bishops 

190,000 

47,810,525 

Missionary  Settlement 

1  bishop 

The  Church  of  the  Kingd.     ) 
of  Greece                                  ) 

10  archbps.  30  bishops 

1,250,000 

The  Church  of  Georgia 

The  Armenian  Church 

42  archbps.  150  bishops 

The  Chaldean  Church 

1  patriarch,  6  bishops 

Mountain  Chaldean 

1  patriarch,  1  metr.  8  bps. 

100,000 

The  Syrian  Church  (called    ) 
Jacobite)                                 $ 

1  patr.  21  metr.  65  bps. 

The  Maronite  Church 

1  patr.  5  metr.  13  bps. 

115,000 

The  Coptic  Church 

1  patriarch,  10  bishops 

50  000 

The  Abyssinian  Church 

1  patriarch 

496  APPENDIX. 


No.  VII. 

COLLEGES    AND    PUBLIC     SCHOOLS    IN    THE    UNITED    STATES    UNDER 
EXCLUSIVE    CHURCH    CONTROL. 

Washington  College,  Hartford,  Connecticut. — Dr.  Totten, 
President.  Professorships  :  Ancient  Languages  ;  Moral  and  In- 
tellectual Philosophy ;  Chemistry ;  Mathematics  and  Natural 
Philosophy  ;  Botany  ;  Law  ;  Lectureships  in  Anatomy  and 
Physiology. 

Connecticut  Episcopal  Academy,  Cheshire. — The  Bishop, 
President ;  the  Rev.  S.  P.  Paddock,  Vice-president  and  Prin- 
cipal. 

Columbia  College,  New  York. — Dr.  Duer,  President.  Pro- 
fessorships :  Moral,  Intellectual,  and  Political  Philosophy ;  Greek 
and  Latin  Languages,  Literature,  and  Antiquities ;  Natural  and 
Experimental  Philosophy,  and  Chemistry  ;  Mathematics  and 
Astronomy.  The  holders  of  these  professorships  form  the  Board 
of  the  College  for  the  administration  of  its  discipline.  Besides 
them  there  is  an  "Adjunct  Professor  of  the  Greek  and  Latin 
Languages,"  who  is  Secretary  to  the  Board.  The  Faculty  also 
embraces  a  Professor  of  Law,  Professor  of  Hebrew,  Professor  of 
the  Spanish  Language  and  Literature,  Professor  of  the  French 
Language  and  Literature  ;  Manipulator  in  Chemistry  ;  Instructor 
in  Drawing  and  Perspective  ;  and  Librarian. 

Trinity  School,  New  York. — The  Bishop,  President ;  the 
Rev.  William  Morris,  Rector ;  and  Assistants. 

St.  Paul's  College,  Flushing,  Long  Island. — Dr.  Muhlen- 
burg,  Rector.  Professorships :  Evidences  and  Ethics  of  Chris- 
tianity ;  Hebrew,  Greek,  and  Latin  Languages ;  Mathematics 
and  Natural  Philosophy  ;  Chemistry  and  Mineralogy  ;  Assist- 
ants to  the  Latin  and  Greek  Professor,  and  Mathematical  Pro- 
fessor ;  Teachers  in  the  French,  German,  drawing,  and  music  ; 
Chaplain,  &c. 

St.  Ann's,  Female  Institute,  Long  Island. — Dr.  Schroeder, 
Rector.     Assistants.     An  Institution  of  the  highest  class. 

Astoria  Ff.male  Institute. — The  Rev.  John  W.  Brown, 
Rector.     Female  teachers  in  the  various  departments. 

Geneva  College,  Western  New  York. — Dr.  Hale,  President. 


APPENDIX.  497 

Professorships:  "  Startin  professorship  of  Evidences  of  Christian- 
ity :"  Mathematics  and  Natural  Philosophy  ;  Statistics  and  Civil 
Engineering  ;  Latin  and  Greek  Languages  and  Literature  ; 
Chemistry  ;  History,  Modern  Languages,  and  Belles  Lettres ; 
Latin  and  Greek  Languages. 

Hobart  Hall  Institute,  Oneida  County. — The  Rev.  Marcus 
A.  Perry,  Principal. 

Lockport  Seminary. — Rev.  Ebenezer  H.  Cressy,  Principal. 

De  Lancey  Institute. — A  Principal  and  Assistants. 

St.  Mary's  Hall,  Burlington. — A  female  institution  of  a  high 
character.     See  pages  228  and  399. 

St.  Mark's  Hall,  Orange,  New  Jersey. — The  Rev.  A.  Ten 
Broek,  Rector.     The  Bishop,  Patron. 

St.  Matthew's  Hall,  Port  Colden,  New  Jersey. — The  Rev. 
P.  L.  Jaques,  Rector.     The  Bishop,  Patron. 

Newark  Female  Seminary,  Delaware. — The  Bishop  of  Dela- 
ware, Patron  ;  the  Rev.  W.  E.  Franklin,  Principal ;  efficiently 
assisted.     A  favourite  institution  of  female  tuition. 

St.  James's  College,  Hagerstown,  Maryland.  —  The  Rev. 
John  B.  Kerfoot,  Rector  and  Chairman  of  the  Faculty.  Profes- 
sor of  the  Evidences  and  Ethics  of  Christianity,  the  Rev.  Reuben 
Riley,  Vicar-rector  and  Chaplain.  Other  professorships:  Latin, 
Greek,  and  Hebrew  Languages  and  History  ;  Rhetoric,  Intellec- 
tual Philosophy,  and  Political  Economy ;  Mathematics,  Natural 
Philosophy,  and  Chemistry.  Five  other  tutors,  a  steward,  and  a 
curator.  There  is  (as  in  several  other  colleges)  a  preparatory 
department,  or  grammar  school. 

The  following  is  the  daily  order  observed  in  this  college : — 

"  The  waking  bell  rings  at  six  o'clock — in  summer  earlier — 
when  the  pupils  rise,  and  in  eight  minutes  appear  at  roll.  Then 
they  go  to  the  washing-room,  superintended  by  a  prefect. 

"  At  twenty  minutes  before  seven  all  the  household  are  in 
chapel  for  the  morning  prayers,  which  on  Wednesday  and  Fri- 
day, and  on  all  the  Holydays,  are  the  regular  morning  services 
of  the  Church.  Immediately  after  they  proceed  to  breakfast  in 
the  refectory,  where  the  students  take  their  meals,  always  in 
company  with  all  the  members  of  the  family.  From  breakfast 
until  about  eight  they  are  at  liberty  in  the  open  air,  or,  in  bad 
weather,  in  the  house.  About  eight  the  bell  calls  them  to  the 
study-hall,  where  half  an  hour  is  spent  in  exercises  in  English 

32 


498  APPENDIX. 

grammar,  orthography,  and  elocution,  in  which  all  the  pupils 
unite.  The  succeeding  four  hours  are  spent  in  alternate  study 
and  recitation,  with  an  interval  of  a  few  minutes  between  each 
for  recreation.  During  study  and  recitation  hours  the  strictest 
silence  is  enjoined,  and  no  intercourse  allowed  among  the  boys. 

"  At  twelve  the  boys  wash  for  dinner,  and  at  ten  minutes  past 
twelve  the  chapel  bell  rings,  to  remind  all  of  the  duty  of  devotion 
at  that  hour.  Some  repair  to  the  chapel,  where  a  short  service 
is  performed ;  attendance  on  which  is  wholly  voluntary. 

"  At  twenty-five  minutes  past  twelve,  the  dinner-bell  calls 
them  to  the  assembly-hall,  when  they  go  in  order  to  the  refec- 
tory. Immediately  after  dinner  they  assemble  for  a  short  time, 
when  the  reports  by  the  professors,  instructors,  and  prefects,  of 
delinquencies  in  lessons  or  conduct,  are  examined  into,  and  are 
followed  with  such  discipline  as  the  cases  require. 

"  From  one  to  two,  recreation. 

"  From  two  to  four,  study  and  recitation. 

"  From  four  to  five,  recreation. 

"  From  five  to  seven,  study  and  recitation. 

"  Tea  at  seven. 

"  During  the  months  of  June  and  July,  this  arrangement  is 
changed  to  suit  the  season. 

"  After  tea  a  short  space  of  silence  is  set  apart  for  reading  the 
Holy  Scriptures  ;  immediately  after  which  are  the  evening  family 
prayers  in  the  chapel.  The  remainder  of  the  evening  is  spent  in 
reading,  study,  or  quiet  amusement,  and  by  nine  all  are  in  the 
dormitories,  where  each  sleeps  in  a  separate  bed." 

The  religious  education  of  the  students  is  also  strictly  attended 
to  in  St.  James' ;  and  "  as  the  sons  of  churchmen,"  says  the 
"Register,"  "the  pupils  are  carefully  taught  the  character  and 
claims  of  their  own  communion,  as  a  part  of  the  One  Catholic 
Church  of  Christ.  All  attend  the  morning  prayer  in  the  chapel 
before  breakfast,  on  Sundays  and  week-days ;  and  on  Sundays 
the  Litany  and  Communion,  and  Evening  Prayer.  Every 
canonical  day  is  rubrically  observed.  There  are,  as  usual,  four 
classes.  The  candidates  for  the  Freshman  class  are  examined  in 
Sallust,  Virgil,  the  grammar,  &c. ;  Xenophon's  Anabasis,  the 
Greek  Testament ;  Algebra  (through  simple  equations),  Geogra- 
phy, History,  &c.  The  senior  class  read  the  most  difficult  books 
used  in  the  English  Universities,  and  review  their  previous  stu- 


APPENDIX.  499 

dies  ;  besides  attending  lectures  on  Geology,  Mineralogy,  Con- 
stitutional Law,  and  the  higher  sciences.  Terms,  225  dollars 
(£45)  per  annum,  payable  half-yearly.  The  charges  include 
everything  but  clothing,  books,  stationery,  &c. 

Virginia  Theological  Seminary. — The  Bishop,  President ; 
his  Suffragan  (Dr.  Johns),  Vice-president ;  and  three  Professor- 
ships.    See  page  193. 

Fairfax  Institute,  Virginia. — The  Rev.  G.  A.  Smith,  Prin- 
cipal. 

Georgia  Episcopal  Institute. — The  Rev.  Charles  Fay,  Prin- 
cipal.    The  Bishop  of  Georgia,  Visitor. 

Theological  Seminary,  Gambier,  Ohio. — The  Bishop,  Presi- 
dent, and  Professor  of  Ecclesiastical  Polity  and  Pastoral  Divinity ; 
three  other  professorships. 

Kenyon  College,  Gambier. — Four  professors  and  two  other 
tutors.  To  this  college  are  attached  a  senior  and  a  junior  gram- 
mar school. 

Kentucky  Theological  Seminary,  Lexington. — The  Bishop, 
President ;  three  professorships. 

St.  Mary's  Seminary  (Female),  Indianapolis,  Indiana. — The 
Rev.  Samuel  L.  Johnson,  Principal;  Dr.  Monro,  President; 
three  female  teachers  ;  five  trustees. 

Columbia  Female  Institute,  Tennessee. — The  Bishop  of  the 
diocess,  President,  and  Lecturer  on  Moral  Philosophy ;  the  Rev. 
F.  G.  Smith,  Rector,  and  Lecturer  on  the  Physical  Sciences,  and 
Teacher  of  the  Higher  Mathematics ;  the  Rev.  John  W.  Brown, 
Lecturer  on  English  Literature  ;  with  four  other  male,  and  nine- 
teen female  teachers,  a  Librarian,  Accountant,  and  Secretary. 
This  institution  is  the  largest  of  its  kind  in  the  country,  estab- 
lished through  the  untiring  exertions  of  Bishop  Otey,  its  founder. 
The  buildings  are  extensive  and  substantial,  of  the  Gothic  order. 
There  are  three  departments  of  study, — a  "  Pestalozzian,"  "Ju- 
nior," and  "Senior."  The  course  of  study  embraces,  besides 
French,  Italian,  and  the  classics  (excepting  Hebrew,  &c),  Alge- 
bra, Theology,  Ecclesiastical  Polity,  with  the  usual  elegant  ac- 
complishments;  and,  unlike  many  "young  ladies'  schools"  in 
the  United  States,  the  training  in  every  branch  is  thorough. 
The  Church  in  the  West  will  find  the  benefit  of  such  instruc- 
tion to  her  daughters  another  day ;  to  estimate  it  now  is  impos- 
sible. 


500  APPENDIX. 

Kemper  College,  St.  Louis,  Missouri. — The  Rev.  E.  C. 
Hutchinson,  President ;  three  professorships. 

Jubilee  College,  Peoria,  Illinois. — The  Bishop,  President ;  the 
Rev.  Samuel  Chase  (the  bishop's  nephew)  Principal ;  two  pro- 
fessorships only  founded.  If  the  magnificent  design  of  the  pre- 
siding bishop  (now  in  its  infancy)  be  completed,  this  will  be  one 
of  the  most  important  Church  institutions  in  the  country.  His 
nephew  reports  that  "  The  several  departments  are  in  operation. 
In  the  theological,  two  have  pursued  the  prescribed  course  and 
been  ordained,  and  are  now  actively  engaged  as  missionaries;  in 
the  collegiate  department  the  Freshman  and  Sophomore  classes 
have  been  formed,  the  members  of  which  were  prepared  here ; 
in  the  preparatory  department  others  are  in  course  of  preparation 
for  the  next  Freshman  class."  There  is  also  a  female  depart- 
ment, one  mile  from  the  college,  under  the  charge  of  the  bishop's 
daughter,  assisted  by  himself  and  Mrs.  Chase.  In  western 
America,  where  the  weeds  of  schism  and  atheism  luxuriate,  such 
an  asylum  for  the  education  of  the  daughters  of  Illinois  within 
the  Church's  own  bosom,  as  "  polished  corners  of  her  Temple," 
is  a  greater  boon  than  the  more  favoured  of  their  sex  in  Catholic 
England  can  easily  estimate. 

COURSE    OF    STUDY    AT   JUBILEE. 

Preparatory  Department. — Reading;  Spelling;  Writing;  Mod- 
ern Geography ;  English  Grammar ;  Latin  Lessons  ( Anthem's 
First  and  Second  Parts)  ;  Csesar ;  Cicero  ;  Virgil  (Anthon's)  ; 
Greek  Lessons  (Anthon's  First  and  Second  Parts) ;  Greek 
Reader  (Anthon's)  ;  Arithmetic  (Davies's)  ;  Algebra  (through 
Equations  of  the  first  degree). 

Freshman  Class. — Ancient  Geography  (Butler's)  ;  Greek  and 
Roman  Antiquities ;  Sallust  (Anthon's)  ;  Livy ;  Horace  (An- 
thon's Carmina  and  Epodes)  ;  Xenophon  (Anabasis  and  Memora- 
bilia) ;  Herodotus  (begun) ;  Algebra  (Davies's  Bourbon  finished)  ; 
Geometry,  Plane,  Solid,  and  Spherical  (Davies's  Legendre). 

Sophomore  Class. — Outlines  of  Ancient  History,  Sacred  and 
Profane,  with  Chronology ;  Elements  of  Rhetoric  and  Oratory ; 
Horace  (Anthon's  Epistles  and  Satires) ;  Tacitus  ;  Herodotus 
(finished)  ;  Homer ;  Euripides ;  Acts  of  the  Apostles  (in  the 
original)  ;  Trigonometry,  Plain  and  Spherical,  and  their  applica- 


APPENDIX. 


501 


tions  (Davies's  Legendre) ;  Nature  and  use  of  Logarithms ; 
Navigation  and  Surveying  ;  Analytic  Geometry  (Davies's  com- 
menced.) 

Junior  Class. — Outlines  of  Modern  History,  Sacred  and  Pro- 
fane, with  Chronology;  Evidences  of  Christianity  (Paley's); 
Intellectual  Philosophy  (Upham's  and  Abercrombie's)  ;  Cicero  de 
Oratore  and  de  Officiis  ;  Horace  (Anlhon's  Epistola  ad  Pisones)  ; 
Demosthenes ;  iEschines  (de  Corona) ;  iEschylus ;  St.  Paul's 
Epistle  to  the  Romans  (in  the  original) ;  Analytic  Geometry 
(finished);  Natural  Philosophy;  Mechanics;  Hydrostatics;  Pneu- 
matics ;  Electricity  ;  Theory  of  Storms  ;  Magnetism  ;  Optics. 

Senior  Class. — Elements  of  Criticism  (Karnes's) ;  Butler's 
Analogy;  Ecclesiastical  Polity  ;  Philosophical  Works  of  Cicero; 
Plato  (Crito  and  Phcedo) ;  Sophocles  (CEdipus  Tyrannus) ;  Chem- 
istry ;  Astronomy  (Cambridge)  ;  Examination  of  the  Geography 
of  the  Heavens. 

Alabama  Female  Institute. — The  Bishop,  Visitor ;  the  Rev. 
A.  S.  Smith,  Rector;  four  Assistants. 


No.  VIII. 


COTEMPORARY    PRESIDENTS    AND    PRESIDING    BISHOPS. 


Presidents. 

Inaug. 

Presiding  Bishops. 

Sue. 

George  Washington 

1789 

Samuel  Seabury 

1789 

Samuel  Provoost 

1792 

William  White 

1795 

John  Adams 

1797 

Thomas  Jefferson 

1801 

James  Madison 

1809 

James  Monroe 

1817 

John  Quincy  Adams 

1825 

Andrew  Jackson 

1829 

Alexander  V.  Griswold 

1836 

Martin  Van  Buren 

1837 

William  H.  Harrison 

1841 

John  Tyler 

1841 

♦ 

Philander  Chase 

1843 

James  K.  Polk 

1845 

Date  Due 

. .   . 

m*mmmm 

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<$) 

BX5882.W35 

Ecclesiastical  reminiscences  of  the 


Princeton  Theological  Seminary-Speer  Library 


1    1012  00004  0271 


